THE GREAT TAR SANDS DEBATE - Saskatchewan Tour

[Oscar]

The Great Tarsands Debate - Saskatchewan Tour

You are invited to attend the GREAT TAR SANDS DEBATE Tour of Saskatchewan – March 15 – 20, 2009

Tar sands development in Saskatchewan proceeds without any public scrutiny or informed debate. There just might be some lessons to learn from Alberta’s experience?!

Informed debate and appropriate action; yes.

These events are open to the public at no charge, with a collection plate to help cover costs.

The Council of Canadians has partnered with other organizations and volunteers to make this Tour possible.

Presenters: See more info below

Carolyn Preston: The locale and nature of the Saskatchewan’s oil sands, its differences from similar resources in Alberta and internationally, and what is required in terms of technology and environment for development to proceed.

Andrew Nikiforuk: The implications of rapid tar sands development for the west and Canada, with a focus on Saskatchewan, concluding with a 10-point recommendation plan.


ITINERARY

MUENSTER, ST PETER’S ABBEY – Michael Hall, Rm 101
Sunday / March 15 / 1:30 – 3:30 p.m.
Doors open at 1:00 pm - Presentation Only
Andrew will address the timely issue of nuclear power for oil sands development and what that might mean for Saskatchewan's residents.
5 miles east of Humboldt, south side of Hwy 5 – use Parking Lot C
For more information: please call Elaine Hughes (306-323-4938)

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SASKATOON – Broadway Theatre
Broadway Ave. between 10th & 11th Streets
Sunday / March 15 / 7:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Doors open at 6:30.
For more information: please call Nayda Veeman (244-0034).

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SASKATOON – Uof S – Rm 241, Arts Bldg.
Monday / March 16 / 3:30 – 5:30 p.m.
Doors open at 3:00
For more information: please call Shannon Dyck (966-6970)

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SASKATOON – McNALLY ROBINSON BOOKSTORE
8th St. at Circle Drive Monday / March 16 / 7:30 p.m.

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PRINCE ALBERT - Cuelenaere Public Library – 125-12th St. E.
Tuesday / March 17 / 7:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Doors open 6:30
For more information: please call Rick Sawa (306) 922-3851 / (306) 961-7894

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NORTH BATTLEFORD – Chapel Gallery – 203 - 891 – 99th St.
(note: this is the only location with a 7:30 pm start time)
Wednesday / March 18 / 7:30 – 9:30 p.m.
Doors open at 7:00
(Going west toward the River, take the last left hand turn off South Railway Ave.)
For more information: please call Reid Stewart (446-4512)

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REGINA – U of R – Education Auditorium
Thursday / March 19 / 7:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Doors open at 6:30
(enter campus on Kramer Blvd. Education Auditorium is about 3 blocks in, on the left.)
For more information: please call Don Narine (527-4566).

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MOOSE JAW – MJ Public Library
Friday / March 20 / 12:00 – 1:00 p.m.
Doors open at 11:30
For more information: please call Larissa Shasko ( 692-7925 / 684-3463)

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SWIFT CURRENT – Great Plains College
Friday / March 20 / 3:30 – 5:30 p.m.
Doors open at 3:00

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BACKGROUND:

Have you watched “Dark Side of the Boom: Canada’s Mordor”?

If not, please take 8 minutes NOW to watch our documentary posted on Council of Canadians website:
(http://www.canadians.org/energy/index.html)

or on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Plp3rQgh5o8


WATCH: DIRTY OIL: ALBERTA’S TAR SANDS EXPLAINED

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjjnEzoxEI8


Andrew’s book, Tar Sands, Dirty Oil and the Future of a Continent, is a comprehensive, engaging story of our times.

Andrew is now in even greater demand as a speaker, both in Canada and the U.S. He's a down-to-earth, hard-working fellow who lives with his family in Calgary.

He’s coming to Saskatchewan, at our request.

DR. CAROLYN PRESTON, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE PETROLEUM RESEARCH CENTRE, DEBATING PARTNER

Remarkable: Dr. Carolyn Preston, Executive Director of the Petroleum Technology Research Centre (PTRC) in Regina, Saskatchewan agreed to accompany “the Tour”, to present the industrial development side of the debate. We are indebted to her. This is after Oilsands Quest Corporation (a major player in Sask. Tar Sands), CAPP (the Canadian Assoc of Petroleum Producers), and Nexen Oil & Gas all declined to participate.

This interview with Carolyn takes place at the 2008 Global Petroleum Show. “Preston explains what the centre does and what projects it's currently involved in, including the Weyburn-Midale carbon capture and storage project.”

At the end of the interview Carolyn is asked about the Tar Sands.
http://www.energytv.com/videos/view/1318
(Disregard the first minute of the video).


FINANCES:

Contributions gratefully accepted!
Please include you mailing address so a receipt can be sent to you.

Cheques payable to:

Unitarian Congregation of Saskatoon, Social Action Cmtee
*** With memo: for the Great Tar Sands Debate***
213 Second Street East
Saskatoon, SK S7H 1N5


You can also mail cheques:

Great Tar Sands Debate
c/o Sandra Finley
656 Saskatchewan Cres East
Saskatoon SK S7N 0L1

[Oscar]

Muenster - First Stop in Nikiforuk's Tour - Mar. 15.09

The Great Tarsands Debate – Saskatchewan Tour – Andrew Nikiforuk – March 2009

The first stop in Andrew Nikiforuk's Saskatchewan Tour of the Great Tarsands Debate was on March 15 at St. Peter’s Abbey in Muenster, SK. This was one of two locations where Dr. Preston was unable join Andrew in this Debate, but his presentation (without Power Point!)was well received by the approximately 50 attending. These folks represented 15 communities including Archerwill, Bruno, Buchanan, Canora, Cudworth, Edmonton, Humboldt, Melfort, Muenster, Naicam, Regina, Saskatoon, Theodore, Watson and Wynyard.

In his very informative and dynamic style, Andrew covered many aspects of the large and complex issue of the tarsands such as:

- a brief overview of how our 150-year old oil addiction began and how it is now coming to an end;

- what are the ‘tarsands’ and a brief description of how the bitumen, this oil-soaked sand, is brought out of the ground;

- the politics, secretiveness and lack of public reporting behind the tarsands industry, first in Alberta and now at La Loche in Saskatchewan;

- characteristics of a ‘Petro State’ (nations rich with oil but short on democracy and freedom of speech) and how ‘Petro Politicians’ use and manipulate easy oil money to stay in power;

- the enormous negative impact this industry has on water, soil, air, birds, animals, fish and people; and

- how the tremendous amount of energy necessary to heat the sand in order to extract the oil from it is now pushing the development of nuclear energy in both provinces.

He also touched on the unrealistic economics of carbon sequestration and on Saskatchewan’s pipedream of sending our carbon emissions off to Montana…all at taxpayers’ expense.

Someone asked the question: what can we do about any of this?

If we ever hope to see anything other than further rape and pillage of our world, Andrew’s reply was to encourage us to get involved in changing the way we elect our politicians!

Andrew’s expertise on this topic and his effort to do this tour were enthusiastically appreciated. It was evident that his presentation invoked energy to inform others about the huge impact the development of our tarsands will have on our environment and our people. Following the discussion, the Humboldt bookstore, Between the Pages, did brisk business selling Andrew’s latest book, “Tar sands: The Future of a Continent”.

Quill Plains Chapter of the Council of Canadians is very grateful that Andrew was able to come to our area, we are encouraged by the reception he received, and pleased with the good network connections folks made as they enjoyed the coffee prepared by the staff at St. Peter’s Abbey.


Elaine Hughes,
Chair, Quill Plains Chapter
Council of Canadians