Canadian tar sands could quench U.S. thirst

Canadian tar sands deposits hold an estimated 1.7 trillion barrels of crude oil, second in the world only to Saudi Arabia, but the environmental impact of mining them far exceeds that of conventional oil, writes Dan Woynillowicz for the Woddwatch Institute, Washington, D.C.

The energy-intensive process of extracting crude bitumen from the mixture of sand, clay, and silt releases up to three times more greenhouse gas pollution than conventional oil extraction and wreaks havoc on local forests, wildlife, fresh water resources, and air quality, Woynillowicz maintains. "Everything about the tar sands is big, most significantly its global warming and environmental implications--leading some to now describe the tar sands as 'Canada's dirty secret.'"

The tar sands deposits underlie more than 140,000 square kilometers of relatively pristine boreal forest, which accounts for one-quarter of the world's remaining intact woodlands. If currently planned development projects go forward, approximately 3,000 square kilometers of forest could be cleared, drained, and strip-mined. The remaining forest stands to be compromised by the extraction process used for deeper reserves, which requires injecting high-pressure steam into the ground to soften the bitumen so it can be pumped to the surfaces, Woynillowicz charges.

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The expanded mining of the tar sands also could divert streams and rivers, specifically the nearby Athabasca River, the primary source of water used in the separation process. Tar sands mining operations withdraw two to 4.5 barrels of fresh water from the river for every barrel of oil produced, thus threatening the sustainability of local subsistence, commercial fisheries, and the habitat of a wide variety of wildlife.

The U.S. currently receives 99% of Canadian crude oil exports. While this accounted for only seven percent of U.S. daily consumption in 2005, tar sands production and development has grown dramatically in recent years, Woynillowicz observes, and more than $100,000,000,000 of investment has been announced for development over the next decade.

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