Oil may be Canada's past, but we cannot let it be our future


David Suzuki - The Guardian
Pipes loaded on a train in Manitoba. A PinP photo. 

There's a lot of fear around abandoning an industry that has been an economic driver for decades - yet the rest of the world is moving on. More here.

Comments

John Fefchak said…
In so many ways, besides digging deeper into Canadian taxpayers pockets, the unforeseen costs
and consequences of the Trans Mountain pipeline moving Tar Sands bitumen extraction needs to be re-examined and evaluated; money wise, and also for the protection and safety of Canada's inland and coastal waters.
It has been established that The Alberta Tar Sands are recognized as a leading source of air pollution.
This, and any needed Canadian refineries require an expensive Coker unit to refine crude bitumen are also massive producers of pollution.
The dilemma becomes even more compounded, as the Federal Government enacts it's Carbon Plan reduction program.

Therefore, in a somewhat desperate situation of bolstering the economy, government will nullify one pollution situation by exporting bitumen to Asia, and maintaining their commitment of reducing Green House Gases.
That logic and program is flawed for it violates the very principles of Carbon reduction needed, through-out the world.
"Building more tar sands pipelines will lock Canada into a highly polluting economy for decades" says Adam Scott, a climate and energy program coordinator for Environmental Defence Canada. "We cannot support any pipeline that furthers the ongoing reckless and unchecked expansion of the tar sands." unquote.
It is clear that government reasoning and undertaking is nothing but a social blunder that involves investors and money. It has no priority when air pollution, environment and water issues are at stake and involved.
According to MP L. Maguire, "Economy of oil, using a pipeline, trumps Water Safety".
It is unfortunate that pipelines moving oil and gas don’t always do their job. Inevitably, a leak or explosion occurs at a most inconvenient time".
Is there a convenient Time?
And when that leak, rupture or explosion happens, invariably it is situated very close to, or within a water source. I have read studies that tell us, we pretty well have reports of pipelines leaking and contaminating water four to 6 times a week ,on average. We have no idea of the unreported spills that happen.
Shipping oil by pipeline may be four times safer than rail, as the Fraser Institute has determined, but what about the consequences of pollution involved to our water sources. I think that the recent North Saskatchewan river oil spill and the declared state of emergency in Prince Albert has made a lot of people come to the realization and concerns that Oil and Water are not a good mix. But then again, maybe there are some people who wouldn't mind drinking water with a mixture of oil. Be warned however: ... it will affect brain cells, cause adverse human health affects and contribute to an early death!
One extremely troubling aspect of buried pipelines is the fact; when they do leak or rupture, the discovery is not instantaneous, as above ground surface travel reveals. Many politicians and those supporting pipeline installations, and even the Fraser Institute , appear oblivious to the horrific consequences and threat to our water sources and environment.
They seem to dwell on the "out of sight -out of mind" syndrome, and how much oil and petroleum / natural gas products are being moved. That alone appeases them.
So while everything is fine and dandy with a unseen buried pipe, it remains lurking, vulnerable and susceptible to being a very destructive and catastrophic menace.
The real nightmare of devastation is to our water sources. However, no one it seems, wants to seriously address the water Issues and consequences. One gallon of spilled oil will contaminate one million gallons of water. Utilizing double walled pipes and installing low pressure shut-off systems have also failed in the past.

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