Green | March 20, 2008 | Comment on this video (12)

Alberta Oil Sands

Livesey
This is a story about the environmental impact of the Alberta oil sands, located in northern, Alberta, Canada. This sparsely-populated region of the country contains the second largest reserves of oil in the world, only surpassed by that of Saudi Arabia. As a result, many of the world's largest multinationals are now setting up shop in Alberta, hoping to exploit this resource. However, in order to extract the oil from the tar sands, it requires clear-cutting forests, strip-mining the land and burning one barrel of natural gas for every barrel of oil that is extracted. Also great quantities of water are used, much of which is permanently polluted and lies in vast tailings ponds. As a result of this damage, local Native Indian bands and the Alberta environmental movement are up in arms. Our story examines this issue.
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    Green,  Earth and Science,  Environment,  On Current TV,  9 more
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12 comments // Alberta Oil Sands // Video

  • Ahni
    • 0
      Ahni  
    • Image

    • Here's a little more perspective about tar sands development... A map of (almost) all industrial activities in Canada (circa 2006). The yellow dots represent the oil industry

    • 3 years ago
  • leahl
  • jscrappy
    • 0
      jscrappy  

    • I just dont understand how in this pod they dont point out the obvious outcomes of the future and what we could do to stop it. Everyone talks about researching alternative ways of finding fossil fuels and energy, but they dont point out all the downsides to ethanol, oil shale, oil tar, and off-shore drilling. The environment is suffering and with the whole global warming concern its hard to believe that companies are getting away with destroying a forest for crude oil. Someone beyond the canadian government needs to put a foot down for the world not just for a company, or a country, or a persons wallet; but for the hope that our future generations won't die due to cancers and other toxins mass-produced by our more than knowledgeable generation! I just cant believe the world has gone this far...how come nuclear is nowhere in the conversation? Hopefully the next administration wont have a problem mentioning an idea such as nuclear since it wont affect his families wallets coming from an oil empire!

    • 4 years ago
  • Wetdog
    • 0
      Wetdog  
    • jscrappy:

      The only downside to ethanol is that it is not as energy dense as gasoline. You get slightly less miles per gallon, but it is cheaper so you go the same distance per $. You just fill up a little sooner.

    • 4 years ago
  • TheRemedy_181
    • 0
      TheRemedy_181  

    • This only goes to show how large cap companies will do anything to make money and have little interest in spending to research to find alternative, more eco-friendly methods of energy, instead of the extremely inefficient method of fossil fuels and the like. There is a shred of hope, though, Chevron is at least advertising that the plan to research alternative energy, same with Shell.

    • 5 years ago
  • Wetdog
    • 0
      Wetdog  
    • TheRemedy_181:

      We don't need "research"---that is completely a diversionary tactic. Biodiesel and ethanol have been around since before petroleum. That is what the first engines were designed to run on. Gasoline had not been invented yet.
      Rudolf Diesel first designed his engine to run on vegetable oil---biodiesel. It still runs better, keeps internal parts cleaner and lubricates better than petroleum.

      Biofuels have been around over 100 years. And they have been in use all that time in various places and times. Brazil uses 80% biofuels for all their transportation fuel needs.

    • 4 years ago
  • patsarts
    • 0
      patsarts  

    • That woman who keeps beating on America is ticking me off. Obviously Her governement accpeted the business and tax dollars - why doesn't she start at home and take on her own officials? Shame on you Diane Gibson- clean up your own back yard by demanding that your country refuse that kind of business!

      What about all the money her people will take in from this projects.

      I think what's happening is HORRIBLE and I am upset that companies are still focussed on OIL instead of developing planet friendly options - but quit dumping on USA!

    • 5 years ago
  • JanforGore
    • 0
      JanforGore  

    • This is great work. Thank you for this informative video. This truly is like a junkie looking for a vein to stick the needle to satisfy their addiction. I wonder if the next 'administration" would put a stop to this?

    • 5 years ago
  • lrudser
    • 0
      lrudser  

    • I grew up in Calgary, which is in southern Alberta – about a day’s drive away from the tar sands. A part of me just can’t believe what’s going on, and another part of me totally expected it. I’ve been away for a few years, but I’ve watched incredible wealth flood the city – there’s almost as many BMWs in Calgary as in LA. Back in the day, you’d see one every few weeks. The success was always associated with the oil boom in Alberta, but I never really knew what that looked like – until seeing this pod. I am really disturbed by what I saw, and I forwarded the clip to some friends back home. But my folks still live there, and the whole situation just leaves me with a feeling of despair and hopelessness. I really hope it’s not that bad, and I’m just over reacting…

    • 5 years ago
  • jinkies
    • 0
      jinkies  

    • Tar sands are as energy dense as a phonebook. If peak oil wasn't reality would we be destroying the Alberta national forest for this little sip of oil. Our happy motoring lifestyle is greying with age, crippled with cancer. Does everyone know what they are going to do when this pathetic attempt at sustainability is no longer enough to keep us going.

    • 5 years ago
  • Wetdog
    • 0
      Wetdog  
    • jinkies:

      We need to change to biofuels.

      Biodiesel and ethanol.

      Biofuels do anything and everything that petroleum does, and they do it better.

      Biofuels can be made from any type of plant material.

      Biofuels do not contribue to global warming, and they are already being used to lower pollution.

      Biofuels do not need refineing, they are used as produced so they eliminate refinery pollutants also.

      Biofuels are cheap to produce, and can be made from plant waste. Biodiesel can be made from saltwater algae grown in the desert with seawater.

      Biodiesel can be used with no modification whatever in any diesel engine. Ethanol can be used up to 30% in any engine, and up to 85% in flex fuel engines. Conversion of fuel injected engines to use E-85 is easy and inexpensive.

      Indy Race cars run on 100% ethanol and have run on alcohol for over 35 years because it is a superior fuel to gasoline, especially for high performance engines.

      We do not need to make any major changes in the supply, distribution and storage infrastructue with biofuels. We need only make very minor changes to vehicles to use ethanol, none for diesel. We can keep doing things as we always have. We do not sacrifice anything at all by using biofuels except inefficiency and high prices.

    • 4 years ago
  • jinkies
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