Canada Oil And Gas Industry: Shrinking Profits May Be A Sign Of Things To Come The talk coming out of Canada’s oil patch in recent months has been increasingly tinged with panic. Industry leaders are growing worried about the oil sands’ future prospects, and the earnings reports coming out this week are a good sign of why that may be. Oil producer Cenovus on Wednesday reported a 40-per-cent decline in profit in the latest quarter, falling to $396 million from $655 million a year earlier. Things were even worse for Calgary-based natural gas producer Encana, which recorded a whopping quarterly $1.48 billion loss. (And Canada's largest energy producer -- Suncor -- said on Wednesday it's mulling delaying some of its new projects. On the surface, the reason for this is obvious: Declining energy prices. But beneath the surface is a rapidly-changing global energy industry. All this is happening just as Canada’s dependence on energy exports has been reaching new heights. So what happens to Canada when energy and commodity prices go down? Related on HuffPost:
Pétrole de schiste : des forages seraient iminents > Pétrole Un autre hydrocarbure non-conventionnel encore plus méconnu que les gaz de schiste risque de faire parler de lui dans les prochains jours : le pétrole de schiste fait en effet l'objet d'après Greenpeace "de projets d'exploration dans le Nord de la France". Rappelons que le gouvernement, par la voix de son ministre de l'écologie, Nathalie kosciusko-morizet, a affirmé suspendre toutes les opérations de forages et de fracturation hydraulique jusqu'au 31 mai, concernant les gaz de schiste dans le Sud de la France. Cependant, Greenpeace révèle que pour les projets d'exploration des pétroles de schiste dans le bassin parisien, seules les opérations de fracturation sont suspendues jusqu'au 31 mai. Ainsi, les premiers forages verticaux devraient commencer mi-avril, tandis que les travaux préliminaires (terrassement, avant-trou) sont déjà en cours près de Château-Thierry. Mêmes causes, mêmes effets pour les sols et le climat La fracturation, KEZAKO ?
ALBERTA ELDORADO DES PETROLIERES... - PLANET DESTROY L’Alberta, Eldorado des pétrolièresLes sables bitumineux de l'Alberta présentent bien des avantages économiques, mais bien des risques environnementaux. Des profits record ajoutés à très peu ou pas de réglementation de l’industrie pétrolière, et une course est relancée au Canada : celle opposant les ressources naturelles et la santé de l’environnement. Cette fois, l’élément déclencheur est la réserve gigantesque de pétrole contenue dans les sables pétrolifères canadiens (connus aussi comme sables asphaltiques ou bitumineux). Alimenté par le désir insatiable des États-Unis pour le gaz et par la dépendance historique de ce pays aux ressources naturelles canadiennes, le présent boom devrait prochainement s'accroître dans une course folle aux profits. La hausse des prix du pétrole brut a déclenché une urgence qui fait de l’exploitation des sables bitumineux une entreprise profitable. Les Américains au pouvoir misent sur cette riche ressource naturelle.
EcoInternet : If we kill the planet all other... Sables bitumineux - Greenpeace accuse Ottawa et Shell de complicité Greenpeace accuse la compagnie Shell et le gouvernement Harper de se livrer à une machination pour affaiblir les lois environnementales au Canada, aux États-Unis et en Europe. Leur but : promouvoir le pétrole des sables bitumineux et faire du Canada une « superpuissance énergétique ». Dans son rapport Le plan pétrolier de Shell et Harper, rendu public hier, Greenpeace Canada s’appuie sur un certain nombre de documents obtenus via le registre des lobbyistes et la Loi d’accès à l’information pour dénoncer cette alliance. « Des documents confidentiels obtenus par Greenpeace confirment que la Royal Dutch Shell et le gouvernement canadien se sont entendus pour travailler de concert à atténuer le pouvoir des législations environnementales en Europe et en Amérique du Nord », écrit le responsable de la campagne climat énergie de Greenpeace Canada, Keith Stewart. Stratégie pétrolière « Le plan qui sera proposé lors de cette rencontre sera celui de l’Alberta.
Sables bitumineux: un site web pour mesurer la pollution | Martin Croteau | Environnement Ottawa et Edmonton ont profité du Jour de la terre pour présenter cette initiative conjointe, qui permet d'observer les effets de l'industrie sur l'air, l'eau et la biodiversité. Le site retrace les concentrations de différents polluants en Alberta, en Saskatchewan, en Colombie-Britannique et dans les Territoires du Nord-Ouest, sur une superficie de 140 000 kilomètres carrés. Le site est alimenté par des données recueillies par des scientifiques du gouvernement et non par l'industrie. Dans une présentation des données, le site note : « Dans presque tous les échantillons d'eau et d'air, les niveaux de ces contaminants sont en dessous de ceux des directives environnementales, et les niveaux diminuent au fur et à mesure qu'on s'éloigne du développement des sables bitumineux. Globalement, les niveaux des contaminants présents dans l'eau et dans l'air ne sont pas préoccupants. » Pas de GES Le chef du Nouveau Parti démocratique, Thomas Mulcair, a qualifié d'«effet de toge» l'annonce de lundi.
EcoInternet : Exhibiting profound sickness,... ExxonMobil’s tar-sands pipeline leaks again ExxonMobil’s 1940s-era Pegasus pipeline has been shut down since it ruptured more than a month ago in the Arkansas town of Mayflower, spilling tar-sands oil and making a big mess. But the company is legendary when it comes to spilling oil, and it wasn’t going to let a little pipeline shutdown hold back its oil-spilling ways. The very same pipeline that blackened Mayflower has leaked oil into a yard and killed plants in Doniphan, Mo., some 170 miles northeast of Mayflower. From KFVS Channel 12: “My grandfather noticed an oil spill that was in the yard [on Friday, April 26,] and it got bigger so we were concerned that it was going to go into the well water because we have well water to drink,” said Lori Arbeau. But the spill apparently was not reported until four days later. Doniphan resident Robert Cooley reported the spill to Exxon Tuesday, April 30, after seeing oil and dead vegetation in front of his house that sits on about 18 acres of land owned by Arbeau’s parents, Guy and Pat Meadors.
Deformed Fish Found Downstream of Tar Sands Mines Written by Jason Mark Chief Allan Adam, the head of the Fort Chipewyan community in the far north of Alberta, has been fishing in Lake Athabasca for all of his life. His father, now 76 years old, has been fishing there even longer. When they caught the sickly fish, each taken from a different part of the lake, the two Indigenous men immediately figured that it had something to do with the massive tar sands oil mines that lie about 300 kilometers upstream along the Athabasca River. Here in the United States, public opposition to the tar sands has centered on the proposed Keystone XL pipeline: how it could jeopardize the fresh water supplies of the Ogallala Aquifer and how it would increase greenhouse gas emissions by keeping us locked into the petroleum infrastructure. The deformed fish caught two weeks ago included a northern pike that had lesions along its back and belly and a sucker that was missing many of its scales. This post was originally published by the Earth Island Journal.
Oil Sands Fever and Lack of Environmental Review The Harper Conservatives are well known for being defenders of the oil sands (no matter what effect they have on the climate), going so far as to modify the environmental assessment process in the latest budget so the project can go ahead more quickly. The Tories became vicious when Opposition Leader Tom Mulcair suggested the Alberta oil sands were artificially inflating the Canadian dollar and that was hurting other industries across the country, particularly manufacturing in Ontario. The Tories demanded that Mulcair visit the oil sands before having any such opinion on them, and suggested that he could not have an open mind when he scheduled his visit. Now, as Mulcair is in Alberta visiting the oil sands (though the Premier of the province — also a Conservative — refused to meet with him) a new report has come out from the Pembina Institute supporting his assertion that the development is causing a type of ‘Dutch Disease’ in the country. Related Stories:
Why Tar Sands Oil Is The Dirtiest On Earth [Video] Thousands of Americans have petitioned, marched, and been arrested in an effort to stop the controversial Keystone XL pipeline. In fact, a poll [PDF] conducted in early 2012 showed that, when fully educated about what tar sands oil really is, and where the oil flowing through the pipeline would actually end up, a majority of Americans oppose the pipeline. Despite this overwhelming demonstration of disapproval, the White House refuses to keep its promise of moving America beyond oil. Portions of the Keystone XL are already under construction, and Big Oil is using its financial and political clout to make sure the rest of this cross-country pipeline follows suit. Many people make judgement about energy based on the things that affect them most: the price of gas or their personal utility bill. Watch it below, and share it with a friend or loved one today! Related Reading: Tar Sands Oil Destroying Wolf & Caribou Populations In Canada Keystone XL Will Increase Has Prices
Pipeline spills oil waste over more than 100 acres of Alberta A major spill of toxic oil waste has wiped out trees and vegetation across a 104-acre swath of Alberta, Canada. The apparent cause of the spill: The rupture of a five-year-old pipeline that was designed to last at least 30 years. The pipeline spilled 2.5 million gallons of a waste mixture of oil and water, which the company responsible, Houston-based Apache Corp., downplayed as “salty water” with “trace amounts of oil.” Whatever you call it, it’s nasty stuff. “Every plant and tree died” in the area touched by the spill, says the chief of the nearby Dene Tha First Nation, while The Globe and Mail reports that “aerial photos show a broad strip of trees that have turned brown.” It’s unclear when the pipeline started spilling. Tim Wall, president of Canadian operations for Apache, said it is “kind of puzzling” why the pipeline leaked. More from The Globe and Mail: If Keystone XL is approved, we can look forward to a lot more tar-sands oil mining in Alberta, and a lot more spills like this one.
February 21, 2012 - Only a Couple Days to Support European Union Labeling of Tar Sands as Highly Polluting Additional Background BREAKING UPDATE: EU blocks passage of Canada’s ‘tar sands’ ranking The vote by a European Commission committee to label Alberta oil sands as a highly polluting source of oil has failed. Proponents of the tar sand fuel quality directive listing failed to win a majority of votes in favor, but neither was there a majority to kill the proposal. As a result, the directive will be taken up by a committee of EU ministers in the coming months. The European Union is still considering legislation under EU’s Fuel Quality Directive (FQD) that would label oil from Canadian tar sands as being “highly polluting”. There is virtually no chance of maintaining an operable atmosphere and achieving global ecological sustainability should tar sands production continue, much less expand. (privacy) I do not wish to receive occasional short notifications of new action alerts (~3 a month) Your message is going to recipients.