)>0'0-1 :J 0 "-.... ::r ~ () 0 m ""C o en m 0 = rt ""C =: ,!R '-- 0 (/) U\.4 Q n .. m ::r ::r 3: <>- :J(/) ... '--0 0 m c: rv· n3 - 0 ~ ~ 0 m=- OQm The Epoch A Journal of St. John's College Volume III, Issue I CONTENTS Canada's Growing Oil Creation 5 John Vining Pirates of the Red Sea 11 Tex Pasley Black Butterfly: 15 Andrew Davenport's Indonesian Immersion Enduring Invasion: 19 Georgia's Fight for Unification I Erin Shadowens Cameron's Corner: 21 Summer Albums Through the Lens 23 john Vining Canada's Growing Oil Creation John Vining, Annapolis, 'I I CC We're not trying to tell Alberta what neces- sarily to do," says Mike Nagy, a former Green Party candidate for the Canadian parlia­ ment. "But [the tarsands are] an envi­ ronmental, a very bad environmental situation, as well as being one of the single largest sources for not meeting our Kyoto commitment." Mike Nagy, who is also the Green Party's Environment Critic, is refer­ ring to the Kyoto protocol, which was adopted in 1997 and put into force in 2005, with the intent of cut­ ting green house gas emissions an average of 5% bellow 1990 levels by 2008-2012. The Sierra Club echoes Nagy, saying that much of Canada's green­ house gas emissions are from Alber­ ta's tarsands, which are a fairly recent development in the search for oil and now account for 28% of Canada's oil exports. Tarsands contain a type of oil Canada, center of the tarsands indust which has been extracted only since Dennis Makar, the CEO of World Oil can only be used for asphalt. After a the late-60's and early-70's, and Tools, Inc., a Calgary, Alberta-based resource-intensive process, bitumen, which were not heavily utilized un­ company that specializes in manufac­ a compressed organic material, can til the mid 1990s. This was known as turing hardware required for conven­ become usable oil. early as 1913, when the tarsands were tional oil drilling. "Many firms, and "When the syncrude industry originally approached in the search ours included, are striving very hard was first founded," Nagy explains, for asphalt. The Sierra Club predicts for zero impact to the environment "it was just designed to be a smaller tarsands will become Canada's great­ regardless of where we work around scale project to develop synthetic oils est cause of emission by 2015 further the world." and look at a different energy source. distancing Canada from its Kyoto The tarsands take the form of It was not envisioned by Premier commitments. huge lakes filled with sand, water and Lougheed to become this massive, "Kyoto is not a novel idea," says bitumen, which in their natural state very-expanding scale of dirty devel- 5 AMERICAS .· . "" "· : . : " ·.. ' THE EPO.CH - FALL 2008 . J ' I I I ' 't ' whatever .you want to call it. Even come back up maybe in a few months don requires major construction of The Alberta Oilsands he, an ex-Conservative premier · of or at the most a year. But what is eco- oil extraction facilities and plants be­ Alberta, has been calling for a mora- nomical, what projects are 'viable at fore any oil may be produced." 1962 1996 tori um on the tar sands ... This is the $120 a barrel may not be viable at All signs point to a tarsands op- The Alberta Government announces its Suncor ships its 500 millionth ultimate irony, you have the Greens $70 a barrel." eration that will be in Alberta for plan to organize development of oilsands 1972-85 barrel since production began. It which could suplement conventional oil calling for it, and an ex-premier of The scaling-up and scaling-down a long time, even if there are some Peter Lougheed is premier of Alberta, will go on to ship its billionth in extraction. Alberta, a Progressive Conservative, of production is not tied to the price temporary obstacles, like low oil pric­ works to get the oilsands running. 2006. because it does not, in his words, of oil as tightly as it may be with con- es. Perhaps because of this perceived meet the vision and the intent the of ventional drilling. Makar, who works permanence, the tarsands have been 1960 2000 the industry." in conventional drilling, explains the causing others, including most of Al- But Lougheed, Nagy and his sluggishness of the tarsands opera- berta itself, to adjust to accommodate 1968 1995 Greens will have a hard time stopping tions. them, as Prof. Chakravorty explains. Suncor ships its first barrel of oilsands oil. The National Oil Sands Task Force released The Oil Sands: A or slowing the tarsands operations, as "Conventional drilling is a short- "There is a tremendous shortage New Energy Vision for Canada, which called the oilsands "the the industry now has momentum in term solution towards increasing oil of labor," he says. "I mean, recently, 1978 largest potential private sector investment opportunity for the Syncrude finishes construction and ships public good remaining in Western Canada." its favor. The sheer amount of ------------------.......-----., I've heard of stores closing, its first barrel of oilsands oil. capital that has been invested the minimum wage is quite in the tarsands makes it very high, almost $18, $20 an opment." forward and saying, 'What are the altogether cover a surface area of 50 hard to change their plans. hour. There's a lot of turn- Peter Lougheed was the premier consequences of this?" square kilometers, and can facilitate "They are in it for the long over of people in different of Alberta from 1971-1985, and is Nagy paints a grim picture of the movement of pollutants into haul," Dennis Makar explains. retail establishments and credited with much of the push to what is now the scene in Alberta, and ground water and surrounding soil. "Their plants are already oper- ~ so on. So yeah, they have make the tarsands operational. specifically in Fort McMurray, where The Sierra Club reports that for ational, and regular, scheduled Q D Fo a shortage. There's a lot of Two of the largest companies op­ most of the tarsands' operations are every barrel of mined bitumen, 4 to 5 maintenance is still required. ~ people coming from the erating in the tarsands, Suncor and centered. He cites both official reports times that quantity of water is neces­ However, cost of maintenance ~ east coast of Canada." Syncrude, both got their start in the and a conversation he had with Chief sary to extract the bitumen, some of is perhaps much less compared One of those people late 1960s. By 1969, both Suncor and Allan Adam of the Fort Chipewyan which can come from the tops of the to construction of new plants. is a 19-year-old boy from Syncrude had been approved for tar­ First Nations, an indigenous people tailings ponds, once the solids have You must remember, com pa- Manitoba who asked not to sands extraction and had begun ex­ living near the tarsands. separated from the water. nies such as Suncor conducted be named. He works doing cavations. Syncrude shipped its first "An Alberta-funded doctor, Mr. Not everyone, however, is as con­ feasibility studies and started unspecialized labor in Al- barrel in 1978, and Suncor its first in Clarke [has] been reporting a statis­ cerned as Nagy. Herb Enns, owns construction at a time when Edmonton• berta at Firebag, a Suncor 1968. tically large number of people get­ Hepalta Purified Air, Inc., located in oil prices were much lower, site that is two provinces Lougheed, whose grandfather had ting illnesses that should not even be Alberta. He has not noticed a change and extraction methods were away from his home. worked to make Alberta a province in appearing in those populations. The in his Fort McMurray sales due to the less efficient." "Well, I'm on a 14/7," 1905, helped to start the oilsands' de­ thing that Chief Adams told me was tarsands: "I don't think they notice As Makar says, the tar- he said. "14 days on, 7 velopment, including Syncrude's first that the game is dying and the flora any difference." sands have found themselves days off. I work 10 hours a project, which was completed with and fauna, both the plants and the Dennis Makar, whose company in a more than beneficial po- • Calgary day.... I live in Manitoba, participation from the provincial animals are being affected tremen­ has offices in Syria, Egypt, Saudi Ara­ sition, even if oil prices are but for the 14 days I'm government under Lougheed. dously. So even their game is being bia and Latin America, is similarly now in a trough. Ujjayant at work, I live at a camp The tarsands were not viewed as affected. So it's affecting the berries unconvinced. "My farm is located Chakravorty, University of about 10 minutes from profitable on a large scale, however, on the plants, he told me this person­ within 200 kilometers from the major Alberta Professor of Business Firebag." until Canada released a 1995 report ally, in Ottawa when I was speaking tarsand producing region in Canada. and Economics, explains that He continues by men- which set out a 25 year plan to ex­ with him." There are no apparent visible signs short-term low oil prices will tioning that he is paid tract usable oil. In 2001, Suncor an­ The Pembina Institute, a Canadi­ the projects are affecting the environ­ only marginally change the plans of and gas production.