Canada contributes a whopping 2% of carbon emissions on a global scale and the carbon footprint of the oil sands is less than one tenth of one percent globally. The issue of how Alberta deals with its oil reserves is Alberta’s issue, not the US government or any foreign government’s problem period.

The land reclamation projects at Syncrude and Suncor are benchmarks on the world stage and recovery of tailing ponds into functional ecosystems has been demonstrated beyond reproach and continues with millions invested into continual research on technological improvements addressing the recovery.

However, with that stated, any large industrial mega projects irrelevant of location will have an impact on the environment and issues will arise and problems become apparent. The Alberta oil sands contribute tens of billions of dollars into the Canadian economy affording Provinces less fortunate to have medical and social services through Federal transfer payments, without this money Canada could ill afford to offer universal services to “have not Provinces”.

Green energy such as wind farms only provides electricity and the average wind farm is responsible for the death of thirty thousand birds annually flying into the propellers generating the “green power”.

The failure to have propane cannons set up at Syncrude was unfortunate and animals suffered because of it, but what are the wind farms doing to lower the mortality rate of wildlife?

If I choose to pick targets and attack alternative energy sources or conventional resources it is uncomplicated to do so finding fault is simple, solutions require time.

Alberta is not perfect and the United States is one of the largest polluters in the world with less than 3% of the world’s population, people in glasshouses should not throw stones. The demand for energy is high and until an alternative energy source is developed, we will need and use oil and by-products that is a simple fact.

Alberta has made it very clear, if America wishes to have a secure energy supply from a friend; they are here for us and will continue to work on innovative carbon capture methods and lands recovery. China and India two very large emerging economies also want Alberta’s oil and China is investing in Alberta to increase their supply.

The gateway project will be built and these markets will be exported to, that is just a basic fact, either way the oil sands are here to stay and there are far larger markets than the United States were demand is insatiable for oil and Alberta will continue to sell to meet the demand.

The doom and gloom sells papers, Alberta’s oil sands employ hundreds of thousands of people with families and mortgages, and you are advocating the destruction of people’s lives offering no real solution or alternative. The people of Alberta are strong, independent, educated and understand the problems they face in oil sands development. Unlike the sky is falling climate change fraudsters, they are addressing the issue with solutions and research.