On Tar/Oil Sands and Political/Corporate Machinations

Oil sands, or Tar sands as they are often referred to, is a type of unconventional oil deposit. It is a conglomeration of sand, clay, and water, that is saturated with a very heavy, viscous form of petroleum. The form of petroleum that is present in oil sands is technically known as bitumen, but due to similarities in appearance, may be called tar due to similarities in appearance and other qualities. They are typically rather hard to extract and process, with only Canada having actually made a sizable commitment to refining of this particular resource. However, the Alberta Oil Sands project, has been called the "Most Destructive Project on Earth." There are a variety of factors that make it a contender, if not the recipient of this dubious title. One of the factors that I find most worrisome from the project is the over 50 square kilometers of tailing ponds that are so toxic that if ducks try to stop down for a spell, they will die before they take off again. The people who lived in the area being mined currently have a complex relationship with the issue as well, especially since unemployment is lower than just about anywhere else, about 5%. But the environmental impact is undeniable, and can only become greater while the project continues.

Canadian oil imports accounted for the largest portion of American imported oil in 2009, "about 19 percent of its total foreign supply, and around half of that [then came] from the oil sands." However, the production of petroleum products from these sources is inefficient, and requires a large quantity of other resources, including natural gas and water, the latter of which is of particular concern, since they use so much and it becomes so dangerous after usage. There are various compounds that are used in processing that accumulate in the water, but can those who work the process really be sure that it won't leak out? There have already been various reports of possible contamination outside of their supposed containment area, and the typical dam used to hold back the tailing ponds are made of sand and the particulates that come out in the expelled water from the factory... not something that I would typically regard as remarkably sturdy.

A particular move being made in regards to the Alberta Tar Sands has been going on for about three years as of this posting. Something called the Keystone XL pipeline has been a matter of rather strong contention in the last few years, though I have only heard of it while looking up information on Oil sands. A matter that has received a strong resistance in various regions of the country, as well as several protest actions, it has been brought before congress and the president more than once; Keystone has had to re-apply for a permit for the pipeline to cross the U.S./ Canada border, after being denied the permit in January of this year. Bill McKibben, one of the main organizers of protest movements regarding the pipeline, said this about Obama's denial of the permit, when put under pressure by Republican members of congress: "When Republicans in Congress forced the issue again by passing a 60-day time limit on the President’s final decision, he stood strong and denied the permit. And that was despite the most explicit threats from Big Oil: that they would exact ‘huge political consequences’ if he did the right thing on Keystone." While he didn't make mention of what kind of channels such threats were delivered through, I wouldn't doubt that they at least believe they have such power (and to some extent do), considering that they have been using the concept of "Eminent Domain" (repeatedly, it's worth noting) to begin construction of sections of pipeline, before the permit has even been passed. Also, there is this account of what happened to two protestors at the hands of local police in Texas (on a different section of the pipeline) who were preventing logging that would have made way for the pipeline. The officers involved were to some degree following requests or orders from the TransCanada employees on how to deal with the two protestors who had locked themselves to some logging equipment. This is a serious sign of a situation deteriorating, I believe, when a corporation has a police force acting almost as their own personal mercenary unit.

 Oil Sands are not the answer to the energy crisis. They should be the backup backup source for when the world is hopefully on a greener supply of energy and some extra or different energy source is used. But more than this, to what extent are people willing to go to simply maintain the status quo? Things need to change, and yet still so many are trying so hard to keep things from progressing to a new era, for better or worse... though in this case, it would be rather hard for things to get worse. I'll admit that I am quite worried by how things are going with this pipeline thing, and I do hope that Obama is able to prove to the Big Oil conglomerates that they don't have the power that they think they do.