Duck Invesitgation Nothing to Quack About

Completed duck investigation nothing to quack about

Published July 10, 2008  by Trevor Howell in News

Alberta Environment’s investigation into the deaths of 500 ducks at a Syncrude tailings pond last April was completed last week. However, it failed to address the government’s role and potential fines will have little impact, say environmental advocacy groups.

Mike Hudema, tar sands campaigner for Greenpeace Alberta, questions how the investigation avoided issues such as how often the government conducts inspections, whether or not there are enough investigators and why a tipster reported the incident rather than Syncrude. “I would say the investigation is not complete until the government’s role is looked at,” he says, adding the government should also make public all the evidence and information collected.

CCS: no solution when you pump out more carbon

A new home for C02 beneath your feet

A Canadian company plans to build a pipeline underground that can pump millions of tons of C02 a year, which would capture and store the carbon dioxide emissions. Sam Eaton reports why it may or may not work.

Climate Changes Effects on Alberta

Forest fires, drought, disease

Climate change study warns province to prepare for spike in natural disasters

Keith Gerein

The Edmonton Journal

Friday, July 11, 2008

CREDIT: Reuters, file A farmer cuts his drought-stunted oat crop near Cochrane in 2002. A report warns Alberta is headed for more of the same.

EDMONTON – More forest fires, unreliable water supplies, volatile farming conditions and the emergence of unfamiliar diseases — these are among the impacts Albertans can expect from a warming climate, a new report to the provincial government says.

The three-year study, one of the first to assess the vulnerability of Alberta’s communities and industries to climate change, suggests the province must act quickly with new infrastructure and planning if it hopes to successfully adapt to the changing conditions.

“The message is that we will still be able to enjoy a high quality of life, but we must move forward with adaptation and mitigation strategies starting today,” said University of Alberta researcher Debra Davidson, one of the lead authors.

New Windows Double as Solar Panels

New windows double as solar panels

Independent, UK. By Steve Connor, Science Editor
Friday, 11 July 2008

A new type of solar panel that allows light to pass through it like a pane of glass has been invented by scientists who said that it is 10 times more powerful than conventional methods of producing energy from sunlight.

The discovery raises the prospect of using ordinary domestic windows to generate electricity with minimum structural alterations, although scientists have not yet worked out how much it would cost to convert a domestic home to a solar-powered generator.

Rising Costs May Mean Second Upgrader Falls

Rising costs present challenge to second refinery in Saint John

Published Thursday July 10th, 2008

Shell Canada’s decision to scrap plans for a new multi-billion oil refinery in Ontario sheds some light on the challenges facing a second oil refinery in Saint John.

Energy Minister Jack Keir said Shell’s decision shows there are obstacles to Irving Oil and BP’s proposed 300,000 barrel-per-day refinery project in the Port City.

Greenjobs Growing!!!

Jobs in Renewable Energy Expanding

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Abstract

Driven by the gathering sense of a climate crisis, the notion of “green jobs”-especially in the renewable energy sector-is now receiving unprecedented attention. Currently about 2.3 million people worldwide work either directly in renewables or indirectly in supplier indus­tries. Given incomplete data, this is in all like­lihood a conservative figure. The wind power industry employs some 300,000 people, the solar photovoltaics (PV) sector accounts for an estimated 170,000 jobs, and the solar thermal industry, at least 624,000. More than 1 million jobs are found in the biomass and biofuels sector. Small-scale hydropower and geothermal energy are far smaller employers. –>

by Michael Renner

Driven by the gathering sense of a climate crisis, the notion of “green jobs”-especially in the renewable energy sector-is now receiving unprecedented attention. Currently about 2.3 million people worldwide work either directly in renewables or indirectly in supplier indus­tries.¹ Given incomplete data, this is in all like­lihood a conservative figure. The wind power industry employs some 300,000 people, the solar photovoltaics (PV) sector accounts for an estimated 170,000 jobs, and the solar thermal industry, at least 624,000.² More than 1 million jobs are found in the biomass and biofuels sector.³ Small-scale hydropower and geothermal energy are far smaller employers. (See Figure 1.)

$2 Billion to help Political Climate

Will cash improve political climate?

The Edmonton Journal

Friday, July 11, 2008

As the old hockey adage goes, the best defence is a good offence — which goes a long way to explain the $2-billion cash outlay by the Alberta government this week to reduce greenhouse gases.

Premier Ed Stelmach says he wants to kickstart construction of a carbon-capture-and-storage network to bury carbon dioxide produced in oilsands production and in coal-fired electricity generation.

It’s a welcome move for several reasons.

Until this week, the province’s strategy to fight the growing chorus of environmental critics — especially those south of the border — consisted mainly of a $25-million public relations campaign to re-brand the oilsands as clean energy.

That was clearly an inadequate response, even for a government that has been dismissive of perceived negative environmental impacts.

Toxic Tailings

Toxic tailings from the tar sands

Alberta Environmental Resources Conservation Board’s new directive worse than useless.

Dateline: Monday, July 07, 2008

by Ricardo Acuña for Vue Weekly

The Alberta Government, along with their friends in the oil industry, have recently embarked on a major campaign to educate Canadians and Americans about the fact that extraction of oil from Northern Alberta’s bituminous sands is actually an environmentally friendly and ecologically sound process.

Awash in oil money, and problems

Energy Hunt: Fort McMurray was a sleepy town on the Canadian frontier until oil transformed it into a boomtown with tons of opportunities – and concerns.

By CNN’s Ali Velshi and Katie Engelhart

Last Updated: July 10, 2008: 3:32 PM EDT

FORT MCMURRAY, Alberta (CNN) — On a hot summer day, there’s a distinct smell around the remote, northern town of Fort McMurray, Canada. You might think it’s the oil being processed at nearby plants. But most residents will tell you it’s the smell of money.

Most Americans probably don’t know that one third of the world’s known oil deposits are buried in the dirt of Canada’s Alberta province. The Oil Sands of Canada – as they are known – contain the largest known oil deposit in the world, significantly larger than that of Saudi Arabia. One and a half million barrels of oil are extracted from the land every day, most of it sent directly to the U.S.

Alberta supplies about ten percent of America’s imported oil – some of it from conventional wells, but a growing amount from Oil Sands. And the fast-growing industry has turned the town of Ft. McMurray into a bonafide “boomtown” with folks here juggling new riches – and new problems.