Social Responsibility in the development of Alberta's Oil Sands

In “Tarmageddon: Dirty oil is turning Canada into a corrupt petro-state,” Andrew Nikiforuk argues that the Canadian oil industry has harmed Canada’s environmental, political and economical images. First, Canada starts to be regarded as having a defensive attitude towards environmental issues since the Bitumen has been explored. Regardless of the Bitumen’s high cost and emission, Canada still welcomes billions of foreign investment in the Bitumen. Consequently, newly operated industries begin to destroy the forest and generate toxic waste (even into water). While refining oil, lots of energy and freshwater are squandered, outpouring a considerable amount of carbon emission. Hence, Canadian oil industry has been pictured as a “carbon-making

To what extent does the Athabasca Oil Sands take responsibility in promoting environmental stewardship? The Oil Sands are a mixture of sand, water, clay and bitumen. Bitumen is oil that is too heavy or thick to flow or be pumped without being diluted or heated. Throughout many decades, the environment has become a critical concern, and the responsibility the Oil Sands has taken is preposterous. The GHG (greenhouse gas emissions) emissions that are released into the environment undermines its practices. The only way environmental stewardship can be encouraged, is if the Oil Sands discontinues its oil development. Other alternatives such as stricter rules and regulations should be placed by the government of Alberta to ameliorate the environment.

The social community improvements of alberta as a result of the oil sands. The albertan government committed around 2.5 billion dollars in fixing up the communities of alberta as a result of the oil sands making so much money(Alberta government,march 15 2013). Some examples of this are the 1 billion in road projects, 241 million in building new neighbourhoods, and 103 million in wastewater treatment and to improve the old ones(Alberta government,march 15 2013). Air is rated good 99% of the time, drinking water consistently meets the the guidelines for canadian drinking water(Alberta government,march 15 2013). Which means the quality of life is good in the oilsands region. In conclusion the oil sands affect the communities of that region positively, by bringing in enough money to make improvements to the infrastructure.

For centuries, humans have had the unsatisfiable desire for more. This is seen quite often throughout history, with a common characteristic being that the environment or some people are negatively affected, usually with long­term effects, in mankind’s quest to satisfy their lust. A modern day example of this is seen in Alberta’s oil sands, as well as in James Cameron’s science­­fiction film Avatar. Alberta oil sands have the third largest oil reserves in the world, making up over 20% of Alberta. The oil industry is a staple part of our economy, as we rely heavily on it. However, in order to get to the bitumen­­rich oil sands, countless trees have been cut down, and many people in northern Alberta have been affected, including over 20 indigenous groups.

Kinder Morgan 's Trans Mountain pipeline has been intensely restricted by numerous First Nations, however voices on the opposite side of the gap developed to dispatch a solid support of the oil patch. Chief Jim Boucher told the Assembly of First Nations ' gathering in Gatineau, Que, that his group has seen a budgetary benefit from its inclusion in oil and gas extraction and that environmentalists ought to be overlooked on the grounds that they are at fault across the board regarding poverty in Canada 's north. His people of Fort McKay, north of Fort McMurray, the epicenter of the oil sands, has an unemployment rate of zero, an average yearly per person income of $120,000 and monetary possessions in overabundance of $2 billion. That cash has been pumped into education, long haul care for seniors and other foundation ventures. With regards to pipelines and oil sands improvement, it is reasonable from Jim Boucher’s peoples’ point of view that they have to accomplish more, he said, amid an open session on energy strategy at the exceptional

       The Alberta oil sands are a large contributor to the pollution of the air and water. They're responsible for 9.3% of Canada's greenhouse gas emissions and 0.13% of global emissions. The oil sands already produce a large amount of air pollution but the emissions are

Fossil fuels are considered to be natural products that are made from the remains of organisms that were once living, and is a non-renewable resource (Yvonne, Locke, 1) that has a big impact on our earth, but now people are trying to find ways to lower the earth’s carbon footprint. The fossil fuel industry is one that has been around for a very long time and is something that contributes in our everyday living, but now fossil fuel is something that is being considered precious material, and the way that we as consumers use it will have a big impact on the shape of our future country (Fossil Fuels 1). With all of this oil being collected in Canada it has a big effect on the economic spectrum as well

The question that has arisen from this shift is whether or not the Canadian oil and gas industry inclusive of the upstream, and midstream sectors, has a net positive benefit to Canada. This essay will explore and seek to understand the myriad of issues that this industry faces daily.

The Alberta tar sands has always been a hot political issue in Canada, and over the years citizens have not seen any change, except a progression in the development of the also-known Athabasca tar (oil) sands. Before taking a leap and stating my personal side on this issue, I will give an overview on the tar sands. Tar sands are made of clay, sand and crude oil known as bitumen. What the oil corporations are interested in is the oil coming from the tar sands that boosts the economy of the business, the community, and the country. The process of extracting oil from tar requires an abundance of heat and water. “For each barrel of tar-sands oil produced, between 2 and 4.5 barrels of water is required” (Thomas-Müller, Clayton, Canadian Dimension.

There are two methods in which oil is extracted from the ground in the Alberta oil sands, open pit and in-situ. Open pit requires large quantities of dirt to be scraped from the ground which is the fastest way to extract shallow oil sands reserves. In-situ method employs the use of steam to loosen the oil from the ground and then suck it to the surface, it is effective for deep oil sands mining. The oil sands generate an incredible amount of revenue which affect the world, the country, and Albertans. The Alberta oil sands are an important part of the global and national economy and are a real driving force. This valuable asset does not come without a cost. Mining causes great damage to the environment through large emissions it contributes

The statement ‘Canada oil sands are much more of a blessing rather than a curse’ is not true because the disadvantages of oil sands outweigh the advantages. For this reason, this paper aims at indicating points against the statement. To understand the defects of oil sand exploration in Canada, one has to delve into the explanation of what oil sands are as well as how the entire process of mining and refining and thereafter, determine the disadvantages based on socioeconomic factors, environmental factors, as well as the infrastructure and energy required for its production.

False. You also may be wondering why I chose false because I just talked about all the negative impacts greenhouse gases have on our atmosphere. Well don't worry, I’m about to tell you why. Now there are numerous bias statements in Emily’s video that depict truth from opinion but I will only talk about a few. For starters, Emily goes on about all the negative effects tar sands have in our earth, but refuses to discuss the positive. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not “pro tar sands” but I’m not against it either. For everything in life there needs to be a balance and you can’t have something good without something bad coming out of it as well. Tar sand companies provide thousands of jobs for people across Northern Alberta and are also the reason why we are able to hop in our vehicles on a cold winter day instead of walking. Tar sand companies also contribute to the value of our dollar so without it, our money's worth wouldn’t be based on anything. For every tree they cut down, a new one is planted in its place and for every land that is destroyed when mining for oil, they reclaim the land and restore it back to what it originally was. Emily also talks about the weather being unpredictable because of the oil sands when really, the weather has always been unpredictable and the oil sands has nothing to do with that. It may alter it yes and cause sea levels to rise, but it does not affect the overall weather. Now one thing that Emily focused on was the city of Fort McMurray. Emily came to our city (for, mind you, ONE day,) and made a bunch of bias statements. First off she starts by talking about the amount of deaths that take place weekly on our main highway (63). Which although her information was accurate, it had nothing to do with the oil sands. Then proceeded to talk about how there is “so much” drugs and prostitution in our city when really, there is drugs and prostitution everywhere.

Before Canada was Canada, the first nations used the tarry material to patch up the canoes. Tar sand’s has been a part of the Canadian history for a long time. Through the progression of the tar sands, Canada has found itself at the forefront for domestic oil production. The history of the Canadian oil sands has changed, the economic, environmental, and equity development of Canada. The oil sands is primarily located in northeastern Alberta. The tar sands are located in the three main deposits: the Athabasca, Peace River, and Cold Lake. Tar sands, also known as oil sands and heavy oil, are a mixture of 84-88% sand and mineral – rich clays, 4 % water and 8-12% bitumen. Bitumen is essentially to our gas, and through an extensive process of separating and stabilize the compounds, it can then be sent off the refinery plants for customer’s consumption. Bitumen is a dense, sticky, semisolid that is about 83% carbon. […]Tar sands can be divided roughly into three categories, depending on their viscosity” . The high viscosity of the substance means that, unlike conventional oil reserves that can be pumped directly from the ground, oil sands must undergo more advanced production methods. Alberta 's oil sands represent a gigantic and untapped oil reserve that could supply all of Canada 's energy needs for centuries. Alberta; soil sand’s deposit contain between 1.75 and 2.5 trillion barrels of oil – approximately 200 billion barrels of which are recoverable with current technology .

“In a few decades, the relationship between the environment, resources, and conflict may seem almost as obvious as the connection we see today between human rights, democracy, and peace (Nobel Peace Prize Medalist Maathai 2004).” TransCanada, a Canadian company, has high hopes of beginning to build an oil pipeline that would stretch close to 2,000 miles from Alberta, Canada to the Gulf Coast of Texas. With the approval of construction, the pipeline, known as the Keystone XL, would carry one of the world’s filthiest fuels; tar sand oil. Tar sands oil alone has levels of carbon dioxide emissions that are three to four times higher than those of conventional oil, due to more energy-intensive removal and refining processes (Friends of the

Competing with its neighbor to the south, Canada has become a strong contender in the global market, making the country one of the most sought after places to live. It is one of the fastest growing developed countries in the world. With major emphasis on lenient immigration and foreign direct investment, Canada’s private-sector and public infrastructure has grown tremendously over the past few decades. One interesting aspect of Canada’s private sector is its special terrain that offers abundant oil and natural gas. According to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA, 2017), Canada now ranks as third in the world in proved oil reserves and the majority of the crude oil production comes from oil sands in the western provinces.