~ Keystone XL pipeline means really dirty and corrosive oil.
The venerable Sierra Club is considered one of the oldest, largest, and most level-headed conservation organizations in the United States. For the first time in its over 120-year history, it has ended its prohibition against civil disobedience over the dreaded Keystone XL pipeline – the project is that bad in the eyes of the environmentalists. As a result, actress Daryl Hannah, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and Sierra Club executive director Michael Brune – among many other famous and influential people – were all arrested for protesting at the White House last month.
~ Sierra Club breaks its 120-year rule against civil disobedience.
Their fear is that after President Obama’s victory in the 2012 election – and not having to run again in 2016 – he may approve this project before the end of Spring. With turmoil spreading in the Middle East, Obama may want to secure a more stable supply of energy for the American economy from Canada. Also, with sequestration now a reality in the U.S., the president may very well fear that the huge across-the-board cuts in government spending will result in massive unemployment and an economic downturn, and this project is expected to create thousands of jobs in the U.S. However, according to the Sierra Club, this project is a bad deal for the people of United States while benefiting only Big Oil.
[Updated Insert – April 14, 2014: Read our latest article, "Obama Likely To Approve Keystone XL," click here.]
~ The Sierra Club explains this deal.
But the Canadian people also have paid a heavy price for extracting tar sands to benefit Big Oil. The damage that has been done to the Province of Alberta in terms of its environment is of such a monumental and terrifying scale that it likely has no parallel anywhere else in the world. In fact, Prime Minister Harper of Canada once boasted that this project is the biggest in human history, dwarfing the Great Wall of China. It is believed that Canada has the second largest oil reserve in the world, only behind Saudi Arabia.
~ 2nd largest oil reserve on the planet – mixed with sand & water.
Canada is now the largest source of oil to the U.S. The problem is, some of this "oil" (really a thick gooey tar called asphalt or bitumen) is mixed with sand, silt, and water; and it takes a lot of energy and toxic chemicals to squeeze asphalt out of millions of tons of muck (comprised of 80% sand, 5% water, and 10% bitumen). After the extraction process, tons of toxic sludge called tailings would remain to form countless poison ponds and lakes.
Experts believe the building of the Keystone XL pipeline would arm the tar sands project with the demand and capital it needs to fulfil its fullest, most horrific, potential; a fourfold increase of this monster is expected in the next twenty years. As a result, the environmental damage could grow to the point of no return for our planet. According to NASA climate scientist James Hansen, it's essentially "game over" for reversing Climate Change if the Keystone XL pipeline is approved (incidentally, he was also arrested for protesting at the White House in February).
~ How tar sands damage the environment.
Keystone proponents argue that the tar sands in Canada would have been developed whether the pipelines in the U.S. were built or not. They point out that the result would have been the same on Climate Change regardless, so why not create jobs for Americans? Frogbook.com's opinion is that there are not enough refineries in Canada to process the tar sands into synthetic crude oil before it can be shipped in gigantic amounts to China and elsewhere from the Canadian harbors. Therefore, Big Oil cannot fully develop the Albertan oil sands without the Keystone XL pipelines as vital conduits to the mighty American refineries. From there, this "dirty oil" would be shipped all over the Earth. That’s the KEY (no pun intended) for this abomination. It is expected that the Keystone XL pipeline would carry about 830,000 barrels of oil per day to the U.S. Gulf Coast refineries.
[Updated Insert – November 6, 2015: President Obama has denied a permit for the Keystone XL pipeline project (see video below. This should not be a big surprise as he vetoed a bill from Congress in February (read the article from Reuters: "Obama Vetoes Keystone XL Pipeline, Leaving It In Limbo"). We at the Frog Blog are glad to be wrong about President Obama. However, besides Obama's concern for the environment, the two other unexpected factors that might have influenced his decision are: 1) the surprising increase in local shale oil and gas production, making Canadian oil less desirable, and 2) the sudden drop in the world price of oil (around $50 per barrel) makes tar sands oil (produced at around $75 per barrel) untenable. Also, read our recent article, "Oil Crash Could End Fracking & Oil Sands," click here.]
~ The Keystone XL is dead – for now.
UPDATE: "Global Warming A Total Fraud": GOP Rep.
(August 13, 2013) Read the latest update on the shenanigans in Washington in regard to Global Warming, click here.
UPDATE: Robert Redford Attacks Keystone XL Pipeline
(September 18, 2013) Actor Robert Redford came out yesterday with a video to blast the Alberta tar sands and the Keystone XL pipeline. Canadian media dubs his campaign the Redford vs. Redford battle, referring to the Premier of Alberta, Alison Redford, click here.
~ It's Robert Redford vs. Premier Alison Redford of Alberta.
UPDATE: Arctic Ice Grew By 30% – Global Cooling?
(September 21, 2013) Read the latest article on the Global Warming debate, click here.
UPDATE: U.N. Climate Report Spells Disaster
(October 6, 2013) Read our article on the 2013 report from the United Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (I.P.C.C.), click here.
UPDATE: Palin Loves Ted Cruz & Coal; Blames Obama
(October 16, 2013) Read our latest update on crazy Sarah Palin and the government shutdown, click here.
UPDATE: U.N.'s Health Arm Links Pollution To Cancer
(October 18, 2013) Read our latest update about the World Health Organization's new report, click here.
UPDATE: Gov't Report: Climate Change Has Arrived
(May 6, 2014) Read our latest update about the Obama Administration's Third National Climate Assessment. Climate Change is here, click here.
UPDATE: Antarctic Glaciers Irreversibly Melting Away
(May 13, 2014) Read our latest update on how the melting of Antarctica may raise sea levels by 13 feet! Click here.
UPDATE: U.S. To Cut CO2 Emissions By 1/3 In 15 Yrs.
(June 4, 2014) Read our latest article on how the Environmental Protection Agency (E.P.A.) will crack down on coal in the U.S. Also, learn about what the People's Republic of China is doing to the world’s environment! Click here.
UPDATE: Nuclear Power Is Best For Climate Change
(August 20, 2015) Read our article on why nuclear power is the only realistic way to cut out all carbon, click here.
For related articles in the Frog Blog:
- Nuclear Power Is Best For Climate Change Click here.
- Mini Ice Age Coming In 2030: Scientists Click here.
- Oil Crash Could End Fracking & Oil Sands Click here.
- U.S. To Cut CO2 Emissions By 1/3 In 15 Yrs. Click here.
- Obama Likely To Approve Keystone XL Click here.
- U.N. Climate Report Spells Disaster Click here.
- Arctic Ice Grew By 30% – Global Cooling? Click here.
- Arctic Ice Melts To Lowest Level Ever Click here.
- Rick Perry Calls Global Warming A Hoax Click here.
- Climate-Change Deniers Gain In Congress Click here.
- Palin Blames "Greenies" For BP Oil Spill Click here.
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