Re: [A-List] U.S. urges 'fivefold expansion' in Alberta oilsands production

[Michael Hudson <michael.hudson@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

The spurt in oil-sands output will deplete the environment because of the
water shortage. The water is being provided (so I understand from the
figures I was given by ERDA) at no cost. Goodbye agriculture -- and any
tribal groups or cities depending on it in this area.
    Water is more valuable than oil when a correct economic calculation is
done. This is purely an attempt to squeeze Russia, Iran and Venezuela. Mr.
Harper seems to be the newest post-Blair poodle.
    Michael Hudson


On 1/19/07 4:07 AM, "Macdonald Stainsby" <mstainsby@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> 
> U.S. urges 'fivefold expansion' in Alberta oilsands production
> 
> Last Updated: Thursday, January 18, 2007 | 4:31 AM MT
> CBC News
> 
> The U.S. wants Canada to dramatically expand its oil exports from the
> Alberta oilsands, a move that could have major implications on the
> environment.
> 
> U.S.and Canadian oil executives and government officials met for a
> two-day oil summit in Houston in January 2006 and made plans for a
> "fivefold expansion" in oilsands production in a relatively "short time
> span," according to minutes of the meeting obtained by the CBC's
> French-language network, Radio-Canada.
> 
>      The processing plant pumps steam into the air at the Suncor
> oilsands project in Fort McMurray, Alta.The processing plant pumps steam
> into the air at the Suncor oilsands project in Fort McMurray, Alta.
>      (Jeff McIntosh/Canadian Press)
> 
> The meeting was organized by Natural Resources Canada and the U.S.
> Department of Energy.
> 
> Canada is already the top exporter of oil to the American market,
> exporting the equivalent of one million barrels a day ? the exact amount
> that the oilsands industry in Alberta currently produces.
> 
> A fivefold increase would mean the export of five million barrels a day,
> which would supply a quarter of current American consumption and add up
> to almost half of all U.S. imports.
> 
> "We need to look at additional pipelines from Canada to the U.S. as a
> new source of supplier, a growing source of supply," said Bob Greco of
> the American Petroleum Institute.
> Continue Article
> 
> But the current extraction of oil from the tarsands results in the
> spewing of millions of tonnes of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere:
> it's already the biggest source of new greenhouse gas emissions in Canada.
> 
> The news of the call for the massive boost in oil production comes as
> Prime Minister Stephen Harper has pledged to make the environment one of
> his top priorities, vowing that Canadians deserve more action on climate
> change. Polls show the environment is the number one concern of Canadians.
> 
> Yet, according to the minutes of the Houston meeting, to multiply its
> output by five and to do it quickly, Canada would have to "streamline"
> its environmental regulations for new energy projects.
> No plans to 'streamline' environmental assessments: PMO
> 
> On Thursday, a spokesman for the Prime Minister's Office said the
> federal Tories will not "streamline" environmental assessments to speed
> up oilsands development.
> 
> "Canada's natural resources will be developed but that will not be done
> at the expense of the environment," Dmitri Soudas told the Canadian Press.
> 
> Canada's main oil lobby group said there is no pledge to increase
> production five-fold for the Americans.
> 
> "There is no promise," said Greg Stringham of the Canadian Association
> of Petroleum Producers. "It's up to the market whether this thing goes
> fast or slow."
> 
> In his state of the union address in 2006, U.S. President George W. Bush
> set out a goal to drastically reduce oil imports from the Middle East
> and make American dependence on Middle Eastern oil "a thing of the past."
> 
> Paul Michael Weaby, a Washington insider and an expert on the
> geo-strategic aspect of the oil industry, said Bush is counting on
> Canada to help wean the United States off Middle Eastern oil ? a goal
> now defined as a national security objective.
> 
> "He wanted to have a reduction of 1.5 million barrels a day by 2015 from
> the Middle East. Although he did not mention Canada, that is in fact
> where the replacement supply will come from."
>