Alberta Oil Sands
Use of
Resources
Some of the land that has been disturbed
They recycle the water they use,
and reclaim the land that was destroyed
On the bright side, the mining companies have recognized the
issue and are working towards sustainable oil extraction
Wrongful
Use of Land
hundreds of thousands kilometers
of land in the area has experienced
a disruption in its ecosystem
What used to be 7750 square kilometers of beautiful land has been deforested or harmed by the oil sands operations
Water
Consumption
Even though most of the water they
use is recycled, the consumption is
still very large and unsustainable
In order to make one barrel
of oil, two to four and a half
barrels of water are needed
Economic
Impact
There were around 140 300
people employed in every sector
in 2017
It creates many job oppurtunities
and tax revenue for the government
The Alberta Oil Sands is
the main source of Cashflow
in the area
Billions of dollars have been
invested in the oil sands
operations as well as created
The oil sands have produced
over 165 billion barrels of oil
reserves.
Statistics of the impact the oil sands has on the economy
The Extraction
Process
Where?
Map of the Alberta Oil Sands
Peace River
Cold Lake
Athabasca
How?
Mined
The oil sands are scooped
up, crushed, then extracted
with the help of warm water
When the oil is within
70 meters of the Earth's
surface
Oil Extraction Explained
In Situ
When it is extracted
underground
When it the oil isn't
close enough to the
Earth's surface
Direct Impact on
Residents
Mental/
Social
Many people feel like it is
unfair for a variety of reasons
Other residents find it unfair because
often times, the profits that come from
the oil sands aren't shared evenly
The Aboriginals find it unfair because the land that they treasure, use, and protect was taken away from them. They also feel helpless, lonely, and betrayed as there is nobody there to support them.
Many Albertans are feeling conflicted
as the oil sands can be both helpful
and harmful
This is how people protect themselves from the pollution
Health
Some studies show that there were
cancer causing chemicals found within
the oil sands pollutants.
There has been an
increase in cancer rates
This suggests that the recent
cancer cases in the area might've
been caused by the oil sands.
The particles in the air have unknown
effects, leading people to think the recent health issues were a result of the oil operations.
Some of these issues include a
variety of cancers and asthma and
other respiratory issues.
A visual of all the carbon emissions the operations create
Pollution
Cons
There is an increased amount
of fine particles in the air that
people breath
Makes up one third of Canada's
Greenhouse gas/Carbon
Emissions (as of 2008)
The oil sands operations leaves
many secondary organic aerosols
in the air, potentially making it the
air dangerous
Carcinogens, cancer causing
chemicals, being one of the
toxic components found among
the pollutants
Pros
They are working to reduce
their carbon emissions by using
a method called Carbon Capture
Storage (CCS)
