Jean M. Chapman

Moscow-Pullman Daily News 6/28/11

There are two commercials on television touting how we “have all the natural gas we need right here in North America.” We probably do, but at what cost to our rivers, land and air?

We all follow the megaloads that are going and proposed to go through our area. This equipment is going up into northeastern Alberta and to the Athabasca oil sands. Why there? This is where Trans-Canada Oil is mining the tar sands. It is mined in two ways: Either by strip or open pit mining, or injecting steam deep into the earth to make the tars increase their fluidity, so that they can be pumped to the surface.

Tar sands are a mixture of clay, sand, water and bitumen – a heavy, black, viscous oil. In the process, cadmium, iron, lead, mercury and arsenic are released into the soil. Large amounts of hydrogen sulfide enter the atmosphere, the gas that gives Yellowstone geothermal features the “rotten-egg” smell. This one operation is the largest contributor to Canadian greenhouse gases. Continue reading →