Pipe Wars Part III: Environmental Cost-Benefit Is More Than Just a Pipe Dream?

By: Meirav Even-Har, Toronto

At the heart of the Keystone XL and Northern Gateway pipeline projects is the environment. How much are we willing to "pay" in degradation to air, water and land, for more profit, jobs and, by some accounts, energy security? Opposition to the two projects is more than just about the potential harm to air, water and land through operations and in case of an accident. Rather, the projects signal the expansion of Alberta's oil sands, and what growth in production there means to people and planet. As industry attempts to gain better traction in Canada and the U.S., perhaps what we all need is a candid moment to acknowledge the environmental implications of growth in the oil sands. Only then can a true cost-benefit analysis be done and externalities accounted for.

Air & Climate: Beyond Carbon Talk

The oil sands account for approximately 7% of Canada's total CO2e emissions with a projected growth to 15% by 2015, according to a recent report by Environmental Defence and Forest Ethics [1]. Aside from direct emissions, the removal of wetlands in creating existing and approved oil sands mines will release between 11 and 47 million tonnes of carbon, according to a University of Alberta research. [2]

Emissions also spell a greater amount of pollutants in the air, stemming from operations (e.g. mining, extraction) and evaporation from tailings ponds. In a report by The Royal Canadian Society, the oil sands is ranked 3rd for Volatile Organic Compounds among industry and power generation in 2008, up from number 5th in 2007. [3]

Water: Quality, Quantity and Humpback Whales

Water quality has been a major issue for the oil sands, specifically seepage from tailings ponds and effects on fish and human populations. While toxic tailings are permanently managed via storage in large open 'lake', the full extent of ecological damage, especially to freshwater is not yet fully understood. A joint Canada-Alberta Implementation Plan for Oil Sands Monitoring, which includes greater sampling frequency, additional parameters and locations, will commence in 2012. [4]

Then there is the issue of water quantity. According to the Pembina Institute, "oil sands operations return almost none of the water they use to the natural cycle." [5]

As for marine safety and ocean life, these issues only came into the spotlight due to the proposed Northern Gateway pipelines. An internal report by the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) released through freedom of information requests notes that the project threatens humpback whale habitat off the coast of British Columbia. [6]

Land: Prevention vs. Rehab

In the oil sands, land reclamation is complex, specifically because more than half of the boreal forest that covers the oil sands is composed of wetlands. Wetlands are extremely difficult to recreate and have yet to be restored successfully. Even industry has admitted that there is no exact science for the restoration of wetlands to their previous ecological state, to be as diversified in plant and wildlife. Alberta Environment is still developing specific mitigation requirements, [7] bringing into question how much behind will the restored landscape be if operations continue at a fast pace.

So what, now what?

There are two components to the environmental argument in opposing the Keystone XL and Northern Gateway projects: one is the actual potential harm done exclusively from having a pipeline built and operated, and the second is related to the environmental footprint of increased oil sands operations.

Whether both pipeline projects will go ahead as planned or not remains to be seen. However, as the discourse continues, it is important that Canadians, collectively, acknowledge the potential cost in clean air, water and productive landscape.

This is Part III of a series about oil sands pipelines construction, one of the most hotly debated issues in Canada and the U.S., which examines the arguments for and against the Keystone XL and Northern Gateway projects.
Part I: Keystone XL and Northern Gateway Keep Oil Sands a Hot Topic in Canada
Part II: Will "Job Creation" Make or Break Oil Pipeline Projects in Canada and U.S.?


NOTES

[1] Environmental Defence and Forest Ethics: Our Nation Their Interest
http://environmentaldefence.ca/reports/our-nation-their-interest

[2] The Huffington Post: Alberta Oilsands: Researchers Doubt Damaged Land Can Be Restored To What It Was http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/03/11/oilsands-damage-cannot-fix_n_1337367.html?ref=canada

[3] The Royal Society of Canada: Environmental and Health Impacts of Canada's Oil Sands Industry http://www.rsc.ca/documents/expert/RSC%20report%20complete%20secured%209Mb.pdf

[4] Water Canada: Feds and Alberta Release Oil Sands Monitoring Plan http://watercanada.net/2012/feds-and-alberta-release-oil-sands-monitoring-plan/

[5] The Pembina Institute: Oil Sands 101 - Water Impacts http://www.pembina.org/oil-sands/os101/water

[6] Canada.com: Proposed Enbridge pipeline threatens humpback whales: DFO http://www.canada.com/technology/Proposed+Enbridge+pipeline+threatens+humpback+whales/6273366/story.html

[7] The Huffington Post: Alberta Oilsands: Researchers Doubt Damaged Land Can Be Restored To What It Was http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/03/11/oilsands-damage-cannot-fix_n_1337367.html?ref=canada

Photo Credit: Athabasca Oil Sands NASA Earth Observatory (image by Jesse Allen and Robert Simmon courtesy of the NASA)