National
Letter from Sierra Club Canada to Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission re: Bruce hearing
August 31, 2010
Dear Mr. Binder,
I have reviewed Mr. LeBlanc’s response to my letter to you. He suggests I misunderstood the role of the CNSC staff in providing advice to the tribunal for consideration and that “the Commission tribunal is a quasi-judicial administrative body with independent members who make fair and transparent decisions based on all evidence presented to them.”
“All evidence presented to them” is the key to a fair and transparent process. We have asked for an opportunity to ensure
all evidence is presented to the tribunal, but the timing and rules preclude that from happening. Unless these two issues are addressed, the tribunal will have only the evidence of Bruce Power and CNSC staff before it when it makes a decision. All Sierra Club Canada asks for is a fair hearing. Under the present circumstances we are not confident the public will receive one.... Read more »
Alberta Government gives cash to anti-oilsands documentary
The province's Culture Minister admits the makers of the movie Dirty Oil, which will make it's Calgary debut later this month, were given a grant worth almost $55,000.
Lindsay Blackett tells 660News the decision to approve the subsidy is now a little difficult to swallow.
Blackett says the movie did meet the necessary criteria to receive the money through the province's Multimedia Production Fund, with the production pumping $300,000 into the economy.
Additional excerpt:
The Executive Director of Sierra Club Canada, John Bennett, tells 660News it's concerning a documentary film producer can fool the government and wonders what oil companies can do when reporting their pollution.
New Study Links Tar Sands to Carcinogens
Submitted by admin on Tue, 2010-08-31 15:54
A new study led by University of Alberta ecologist Dr. David Schindler and published in the renowned Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences makes some alarming conclusions about the water near the tar sands. After monitoring 60 sites along the Athabasca River and its tributaries, Dr. Schindler concluded the tar sands have added carcinogenic toxins to the area environment.
The toxins are higher in concentration close to, and downstream from, the epicentre of tar sands refining near Fort McMurray. The study focuses on 13 toxic substances explicitly linked to tar sands development, which are toxic even at low concentrations. Included in the list are heavy metals such as mercury and lead. ... Read more »
Tar Sands Giant Total falls short on Green Promises
In addition to highlighting areas of concern, Sierra Club also highlights the technology that Total originally said would be part of the mining proposal but has since been removed. Total’s updated proposal flies in the face of several provincial and federal statements to eliminate toxic tailing waste ponds, move away from open pit mining projects, and to use carbon capture and storage technology.
“The application for the Joslyn Mine falls ridiculously short of the green promises made by Total,” explains Sheila Muxlow, Director with the Sierra Club Prairie. “Original promises of dry tailings and carbon capture and storage to mitigate the pollution from this project have been rescinded and what is left is another toxic mine that will decimate an area the size of 13,000 football fields and add more harm to an already overwhelmed area.”
... Read more »
U.S. retailers to join oilsands fuel boycott
A campaign to boycott Alberta-sourced gasoline has gained momentum after trendy clothing manufacturers and a major U.S. drugstore chain announced they would be avoiding oilsands-related fuels.
Clothiers The Gap, Timberland and Levi Strauss, as well as Walgreens, have joined a growing list of corporations choosing to avoid using gasoline refined from Canadian bitumen, according to reports Friday.
The move to less carbon-intensive fuels was sparked by an ongoing campaign by San Fransisco-based environmental group Forest Ethics, said Walgreens spokeswoman Tiffani Washington.
Additional excerpt:
Allegations of corporations using the campaigns to seem more environmentally sensitive don't ultimately matter, said a Sierra Club of Canada executive.
... Read more »
