Frontier Centre

Environmental extremists like the public to believe that the debate over the oil sands is a choice between economic rewards or a healthy environment. But Canada and Alberta can have both. The oil sands are being developed in a responsible way. Only three percent of the surface area is minable, and only a fraction of that is being dug up. The land is restored after mining operations are finished. Steam-assisted gravity drainage is used whenever possible, with a relatively small environmental impact because it involves no mining at all. Activists say the oil sands are a major contributor to climate change. The truth is, Canada only generates about 2 percent of global emissions of greenhouse gases, and less than 8 percent of that comes from the oil sands. The public is told that oil-sands operations require huge amounts of fresh water. The truth is, the city of Toronto consumes more than twice as much water, and up to 95 percent of the water used by the oil sands is recycled. The oil sands employ