The document summarizes information about the Alberta oil sands operations, including: 1) 20% of oil sands are extracted via surface mines while 80% use in situ (SAGD) extraction methods. SAGD has a larger environmental footprint than surface mining. 2) Surface mining has moved over 1.4 billion tons of forest and soil, covering over 170 square kilometers in tailings ponds that leak toxic contaminants daily. Less than 2% of lands have been certified as reclaimed. 3) In situ extraction, which represents 80% of future development, threatens more land than surface mining. Current operations consume 13 football fields of boreal forest land per day.

16. The Alberta Oil Sands
20% - Surface Mines
80% - In Situ (SAGD)

17. “There is nothing on this planet that compares with the
destruction going on there. If there were a global prize
for unsustainable development, the tar sands
would be the clear winner.”
~David Schindler, ecology professor at the University of Alberta

19. The Mines

20. “Overburden”
Since operations began, tar sands extractors have
moved more than 1.4 billion tons of what industry
calls “overburden” – which is actually pristine Boreal
forest. This is more dirt than was moved for the Great
Wall of China, the Suez Canal, the Great Pyramid of
Cheops and the 10 largest dams in the world ….
combined.

21. “Tailings Ponds”
- Cover an area over 170 square kilometres
- Annual licensed oil sands withdrawals are equal to a city of 3
million
- Everyday tailing ponds leech over 11 million litres of toxic
contaminants into the Athabasca watershed & Mackenzie River
Basin
“Tailings Ponds”

22. Steam Plants (SAGD)
A Larger
Environmental
Footprint than
surface mining
80% of recoverable
tar sands deposits
will be extracted by In
Situ

23. © Jiri Rezac/WWF-UK
SAGD has a larger environmental
footprint than open-pit mines

25. Next slide shows simulation of future development footprint based development of
existing leases

28. Land Impacts
As of 2009, 686 km2 of land had been lost to surface
mining (up from 470 km2 in 2007). After 50 years of
operations, only 0.16% of land has been certified as
reclaimed
Approximately 9.4 hectares of land or 18 football fields are
consumed for each million barrels of oil. At current
production rates, that represents 13 football fields of
pristine boreal lost each day.
In Situ threatens more land than mining and represnets
80% of future ‘developments’

29. BEFORE

30. `
“Equivalent land use capacity”
AFTER
To date, less than 2% of all
tar sands operations have
been certified as
“reclaimed” –

31. Migratory Pattern Disruptions
 Caribou
 Moose
 Bison
 Song birds
 Waterfowl
 Fish

32. Contaminants in Traditional Foods

33. Contamination of People through contamination
of waterways and food chain

34. Fort Chipewyan

35. Biomonitoring Study 2013

36. Canada is the testing grounds