Stelmach to defend oilsands in Washington

Praxius

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Dec 18, 2007
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http://www.cbc.ca/canada/calgary/story/2008/01/16/stelmach-washington.html

Alberta's premier is in Washington Wednesday to assure Americans that his province is a stable and secure source of oil for U.S. consumers and to defend the environmental sustainability of the oilsands.

Legislation passed by the United States last month forbids any U.S. federal agencies from buying vehicle fuel that comes from non-conventional sources, unless the life cycle of its greenhouse gas emissions is the same or less than conventional oil.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday before leaving for Washington, Stelmach defended his province's oil supply, saying cleaner oil imported from the Middle East has to travel greater distances, leading to increased greenhouse gas emissions.

Most of the oil in the oilsands is trapped in a mixture of sand, water and clay, and difficult and expensive to extract.

Stelmach will spend the morning touring the city's monuments before appearing before a Senate hearing to deliver a speech called Alberta: Leading the Way on North American Energy Security.

"Given there are a number of issues percolating, it's always good to be there, meet the decision-makers face to face across the table," said Stelmach.

Sending Stelmach, his wife, the ministers of agriculture and sustainable resources and three staff members to Washington will cost about $54,000, including a reception hosted by the province, said the premier's office.

Falling behind?

An energy expert with the University of Calgary's Institute for Sustainable Energy, Environment and Economy said that while attitudes are evolving south of the border, Canadian companies are holding off making changes.

"We may find ourselves up here in the unfortunate position of being behind corporations in other parts of the world that make the change and invest in the capital ahead of the game and out-compete us in the short term," said Michael Moore.

Moore used to work as a senior economist for an energy lab in California, the birthplace of the movement toward cleaner fuel.

Melanie Nakagawa, a representative with the U.S.-based lobby group Natural Resource Defence Council, has spent the last two years working on an oilsands portfolio. Last week, the council sent letters to 15 airlines asking them to stop relying on the oilsands for fuel.

"This isn't just looking at what happens at your gas tank or in your car, but what happens at the very moment of the extraction of this fuel," she said.

Bob Page, who has been working on environmental and energy issues in Alberta for half a dozen years, said the province is ready to answer such questions.

"This is a serious new marketing problem for oilsands products which will have to be addressed by the Canadians, because I see it as a rising movement in the U.S.," said Page.
 

karrie

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*karrie stands up, disgusted, walks into kitchen, beats head against wall repeatedly*
 

Praxius

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*karrie stands up, disgusted, walks into kitchen, beats head against wall repeatedly*

Any paticular reason why?

Myself I don't even see why we should bother with the US to begin with. Deal with other countries. If the US wants to be picky about how the oil is collected and at the same time moan and complain to Saudi Arabia that they need to step up production, then let them wallow in their own confusion.
 

darkbeaver

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Most of the "Oil Money" dumped into Alberta is American, our Albertans always wanted to be just like Americans, guess they finally made it. You can't have resources and say no to Uncle Sam without being democratized into vapour and or dust. I'll bet Mr Stelmach comes home after the bash in Washingmachine with a wonderfull new idea, like signifigantly reduced royaltys for Albertas dirty oil. Remember the New Green Revolution just announced by the Transnational (thieves, banits,murderers,ect;). Craporations.
 

Pangloss

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Mar 16, 2007
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It is cheaper and easier to sell our oil to the U.S. The U.S. wants it. They can pass any legislation they want, but they will still buy our oil, until it runs out, and we'll go back to being ranchers and farmers on drought-stricken land.

Sigh.

Pangloss
 

darkbeaver

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It is cheaper and easier to sell our oil to the U.S. The U.S. wants it. They can pass any legislation they want, but they will still buy our oil, until it runs out, and we'll go back to being ranchers and farmers on drought-stricken land.

Sigh.

Pangloss

Normally I'd agree with your forcast, but I'm abnormal,so here goes, the buyer in this case has a history of extortion, conspiracy and armed theft, and always shoot for the best price. Buy in these times has variable meaning, you will notice similar problems with words like democracy, freedom, peace. I think Alberta will get screwed and so does Wall Street. Canada should immeadiately leave Alberta before they drag the whole country down. We should just give Alberta to Uncle Sam and call it even. I mean it's going to be a wasteland anyway, why would we be wasteing transfer payments on formerly rich Albertans, why can't they just get jobs.:lol:
 

Praxius

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Beaver, I don't agree with that either. Just because something is easier, doesn't make it right... you almost sound like you're taking a chapter from the US in the above explination (no offense)

Give the US one of our proviences which hold loads of oil and call it even? That's just insane. Among some of the obvious reasons why that'd be a bad idea, the US would then have all the oil they'd need for the next few years and then they'd have no problems starting another war with Iran, minus troop levels.

The US keeps getting away with one thing after another, and so long as they don't get directly caught, it's not illegal I suppose.

The US makes everybody else's lives harder around the world and the solution is to give them what they want because it's easier? Screw that! Cut all products and services, deal with other countries instead, and what they don't cover, switch to internal trading within our own borders. Let the US run out of everything, cripple their nation and cause them to revolt (which they should have done years ago based on constitutional rights) and take them out of the super power status they have lived in for so long.

The only reason why they're still a super power is because they substain their nation by outsourcing for products from other countries to balance out their older, more hard working eras past. If the rest of nations got fed up and cut all ties, the US would crumble. They wouldn't even have enough resources to threaten other nations to give them what they want.

Vote Praxius as Prime Minister! I'll make us the next world power... or the next world crator, either way, it'll be a fun time!
 

EagleSmack

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Feb 16, 2005
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Any paticular reason why?

Myself I don't even see why we should bother with the US to begin with. Deal with other countries. If the US wants to be picky about how the oil is collected and at the same time moan and complain to Saudi Arabia that they need to step up production, then let them wallow in their own confusion.

On this I agree with you 100%. If Canada can produce oil like this we should be able to buy it. Our stance is ridiculous and pandering and placating to the wrong crowd.
 

EagleSmack

Hall of Fame Member
Feb 16, 2005
44,168
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Beaver, I don't agree with that either. Just because something is easier, doesn't make it right... you almost sound like you're taking a chapter from the US in the above explination (no offense)

Give the US one of our proviences which hold loads of oil and call it even? That's just insane. Among some of the obvious reasons why that'd be a bad idea, the US would then have all the oil they'd need for the next few years and then they'd have no problems starting another war with Iran, minus troop levels.

The US keeps getting away with one thing after another, and so long as they don't get directly caught, it's not illegal I suppose.

The US makes everybody else's lives harder around the world and the solution is to give them what they want because it's easier? Screw that! Cut all products and services, deal with other countries instead, and what they don't cover, switch to internal trading within our own borders. Let the US run out of everything, cripple their nation and cause them to revolt (which they should have done years ago based on constitutional rights) and take them out of the super power status they have lived in for so long.

The only reason why they're still a super power is because they substain their nation by outsourcing for products from other countries to balance out their older, more hard working eras past. If the rest of nations got fed up and cut all ties, the US would crumble. They wouldn't even have enough resources to threaten other nations to give them what they want.

Vote Praxius as Prime Minister! I'll make us the next world power... or the next world crator, either way, it'll be a fun time!

But this tactic won't work either.
 

karrie

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Jan 6, 2007
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Any paticular reason why?

Environmental damage and wasted energy. The amount of water and gas we're burning up there, it just makes me want to scream. And they ignore it. They ignore all the problems and just keep churning. Today, it's my pet peeve. GGGgggrrrr.
 

Praxius

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Dec 18, 2007
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But this tactic won't work either.

Well unless you explain why, it will..... So long as we all Stay the Course! *Jabs finger in Podium continually*

Oh I forgot a couple of "Heh, heh's"

Heh.... if we stay the course..... we will thwart the evil doers. You know? *waves hand around in a circle* Those people who do those evil things we don't like. They're doing them, I know they're doing them. Heh.... and they know that I know that they know we know, you know?

Any questions?
 

karrie

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"you" albertans? So far the only albertans to weigh in on this thread have been Pang and I, and we haven't exactly been supportive of the oilsands.
 

darkbeaver

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Jan 26, 2006
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"you" albertans? So far the only albertans to weigh in on this thread have been Pang and I, and we haven't exactly been supportive of the oilsands.

I did not aim the comment at any specific Albertan except Stelmach, I did not know where you or Pangloss were from. If you are in fact smart (as a province) how did you get sucked into a mega environmental disaster with "The Great Satan" to support constant wars of conquest. It appears to me that, as a province, you sold your health and future for money.
 

karrie

OogedyBoogedy
Jan 6, 2007
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Ah, okay.

As for how could we be suckered into selling our health and future.... we're a petro province... we've been doing that long before the oilsands started.

And no one really foresaw just how much these tar sands would suck up as far as resources. I don't recall it really occurring to anyone when it all first kicked off. The work was the thing that was focused on. And man, we've seen friends make a lot of money up there.