Group items tagged

The issues surrounding oil production from the tar sands and nuclear power plants being proposed in Alberta are integrally woven together, says journalist Andrew Nikiforuk. The Calgary-based business journalist was in Grande Prairie Thursday to give a presentation at the Golden Age Centre based on his latest book, Tar Sands: Dirty Oil and the Future of the Continent. Sponsored by the National Farmers Union, it followed similar presentations in Dawson Creek, sponsored by the Peace River Organic Producers Association, and in Peace River, which was sponsored by the Peace River Environmental Society. The issues surrounding the tar sands and the nuclear power proposals weave together, said to Nikiforuk, as he believes one is motivating the other. Nikiforuk opened by stating the tar sands have changed Alberta forever.

Schacherl describes the nuclear agenda for Alberta. Bruce Power, a private nuclear operator from Ontario, is proposing to build four large first-of-a-kind nuclear reactors in the Peace River region that would produce 4,000 megawatts of nuclear power. As the Pembina Institute has shown in "Greening the Grid," (http://re.pembina.org/pub/1763) all of our electrical needs can be met in Alberta over the next 20 years through energy efficiency, cogeneration and renewable energy such as wind, power and geothermal. "From wind power alone, there is 11,500 megawatts in applications waiting to be considered. The excess energy that nuclear would produce would end up being exported likely to the United States," verifies Schacherl. One of the reasons why nuclear energy is being installed in Northern Alberta is for assisting oil sands operation for the purpose of extracting bitumen. However, Schacherl explains that in March 2007, the Standing Committee on Natural Resources concluded that "classic nuclear plants are too big for oil sands development and that smaller plants would have to be considered."

Schacherl describes the nuclear agenda for Alberta. Bruce Power, a private nuclear operator from Ontario, is proposing to build four large first-of-a-kind nuclear reactors in the Peace River region that would produce 4,000 megawatts of nuclear power. As the Pembina Institute has shown in "Greening the Grid," (http://re.pembina.org/pub/1763) all of our electrical needs can be met in Alberta over the next 20 years through energy efficiency, cogeneration and renewable energy such as wind, power and geothermal. "From wind power alone, there is 11,500 megawatts in applications waiting to be considered. The excess energy that nuclear would produce would end up being exported likely to the United States," verifies Schacherl. One of the reasons why nuclear energy is being installed in Northern Alberta is for assisting oil sands operation for the purpose of extracting bitumen. However, Schacherl explains that in March 2007, the Standing Committee on Natural Resources concluded that "classic nuclear plants are too big for oil sands development and that smaller plants would have to be considered."

"Canadians have watched in horror as BP's Gulf of Mexico oil spill has mushroomed week by week into the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history. The damage to the Gulf's ecosystem is unknown. Oceanographers report seeing massive columns of oil well below the surface. This is a phenomenon not seen before. Likewise, the chemical dispersants used so far may prove to be a "cure" that rivals the oil itself for toxicity. Economically, the costs are already staggering. BP has spent nearly $1 billion on cleanup and appears to have barely made a dent. Fishing and oceanside tourism anywhere in the Gulf states are crippled. Huge areas of precious wetland may have to be burnt. Here in Canada we can draw some conclusions already about the consequences of this spill, which is now at least twice as serious as theExxon Valdezdisaster in 1989. "

Here's a quick geopolitical quiz: What country is three times the size of Texas and has more than 300 days of blazing sun a year? What country has the world's largest oil reserves resting below miles upon miles of sand? And what country is being given nuclear power, not solar, by President George W. Bush, even when the mere assumption of nuclear possession in its region has been known to provoke pre-emptive air strikes, even wars?

Nuclear power could help meet growing oilsands energy needs, but won't likely happen before 2025, a study released late Friday said. Petroleum Technology Alliance Canada, which looked at alternatives to natural gas in oilsands development, said nuclear energy still poses many challenges. Existing technology can't produce required pressurized steam for in-situ oilsands development, the study found, while high costs, a lack of commercial development or regulatory approvals would mean emerging options wouldn't be ready for nearly a decade.

Call it the Sage Brush Rebellion II. Several Republican senators Wednesday launched a new Western Caucus to advocate relaxing government's grasp of resources and lands in the wide-open swaths in the West. The move harks back to 1970s effort by Western officials to turn back federal lands to state and local governments. "As one of the senators who helped initiate and carry the battle on the original Sage Brush Rebellion back in the Carter years, we're there again," Sen. Orrin Hatch said at a news conference at the Capitol. "We have to fight very, very hard to make sure that the West is being treated fairly." Hatch joined Utah colleague Bob Bennett, Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso and Idaho Sen. Jim Risch