Water and Oil. A Post from the Vermilon River to Watery Wednesday

Some of these photos are left over from earlier posts, but are still interesting photos, and related to the Tar Sands post. Since oil and water do go together, but at the risk of the environment ,the scenes are at least germane to what I'm going to say today. So enjoy them!! I said on my woodpecker posts that I would reply to questions on the tar sands' post.

But first an aside: I said because we have not sponsored lots of independent science, nor tapped by way of education the brains of youth, all the technologies are in their infancy in the tar sands, and we have been forced by the failure of government to use unproven science.

Anti-environmentalists will quote carbon trapping underground on land or in the ocean as an alternative. You can read about this method on the web site How Stuff Works, just google it. This again is unproven science and costly. Carbon has to be trapped and then transported by pipeline, truck or tanker to the site. And that uses more energy. If it leaks in an ocean site, it will turn the water acidic, a process which is already going on, because of high carbon emissions.

 In the Cameroons a volcanic eruption breached a CO2 site causing 2000 deaths and  the contamination of a lake.The US had an experimental site in conjunction with a coal fired electrical plant designed to generate enough electricity for 150,000 homes. President Bush cancelled it when the cost reached $50 Million with no answers.

I heard on the CBC news that a farmer was attempting to sue the Government of Manitoba for CO2 contamination of his water supply, which he had had an environmental study group check out. He was next door to a conventional oil field which the oil company uses CO2 to force the oil from the ground. The company PR person said they were using the latest technologies. The Premier of the province said there was no claim or proof on his desk. Maybe it fell off!!! I haven't heard any more about it and don't know what to make of it.

The only successful application is in the Sleipner Gas Field which has been in existence for only 10 years.

Scary Isn't it?

I was surprised by the number of comments to the original post because it was long and wordy. Generally in the comments, there was a weariness with the constant battle so let me help you out.

It is a war of attrition, in which the basic enemy is loaded with money, but remember what they buy with it is a rather shoddy politician, who'll desert at the first loses. The right wing, and look at them, are not the sharpest knives in the drawer.

I also said that the 19th century industrial economy is fast destroying itself, and all we are trying to do is manage our way with the least bumps as possible, while we wean ourselves off consumerism which means energy conservation, to give us time to test and try new methods. And try to construct an economy that works, with minimum dislocation to the people. The right will call us communists and socialists if they still exist. And you may have to do some name calling back, so be prepared.

This morning I heard on the radio that China has now an inflationary economy where food prices are steadily rising. Eighty percent of China lives in sheer poverty. They want tar sands oil which is expensive and will become more expensive. Remember the pipeline the pro-oil people want to build to the west coast of Canada, that's for China. If they were successful, could China afford the cost of the oil plus the pipe line? With tar sands oil, China will soon have run away inflation. The whole country is a sea of pollution so water is a problem also, and global warming through weather change is playing hell with their agricultural yields. These are the normal prerequisites for a revolution in a country like China.

Since we're all tired of fighting, let's recount some of the successes:

I heard from Woodland Trust about the UK forests. They have a petition that I posted which you can sign even if you don't live there. The trust has collected some 400,000 signatures, and they said the UK Government is listening to them.Remember the UK Government is a minority government also. A minority government means the people don't approve of any party.

David Suzuki's  documentary has succeeded in so far as our federal government is  independently supervising the science, and contamination in the Tar Sands through an independent board, not the province who was dependent on the companies. This is a severe spanking delivered to our PM who is a Conservative and from Alberta. And certainly reflects poorly on the Alberta Government. If you watched the film most of that opposition came from Canada itself not abroad or the US.

 Is there more to do?? Sure it's a war of attrition.

Some pointed out the earlier fights over corporate farming with genetically altered food were unsuccessful. This fight is easier because global warming is here,and the price of oil is rising astronomically,which will inflate an economy faster than you can blink. Just think the US economy has barely restarted. If it heats up a little then oil will rise because supply is limited. And remember oil is a commodity and traded on futures, which means Wall Street, Bay Street, and the London exchange are back helping to raise the price. That means US inflation!!  And with the price of oil, you can't afford to ship a DNA altered apple to me from South America, or at least one that I can afford.

The right wing has money which you saw used in the US election, but we have the Internet, and look how potent it is.Look at Egypt or Iran, and maybe China again.And even our successes outlined above.

Coupled with the Internet, we are the baby boomers who are the most educated group, the most results oriented group, and we're retired, so we have the time. What business bought to represent them is the next generation down and they're NOT strong. So don't lose faith.

The original tar sands posted on Tuesday so just scroll down if you want to read it.