“The Bush regime is very much focused on the tar sands as the strategic salvation for their domestic and military needs,” said Laxer. “The other partner in NAFTA, Mexico, they’re looking after their own natural gas and energy needs. But, in which country do you think the people are most likely to freeze in the dark? This is not just a case of not being able to get to Wal-Mart. For Canadians, this is life or death.”
Unfortunatley it looks like Canada is stuck with the North American Free Trade Agreement that it signed and ‘capitalist’ Bush will milk it till the countries reserves are dry 
But the bit which hits me the hardest is this line in the report…
The price of doing business the way in which we are doing it now is turning the northern third of Alberta into a war zone," he said. "When you fly over the area, you see the boreal forest and muskeg has been stripped.
I was born and raised around forests and they are the life sustainers of the earth. Also the fact that all the superpowers are telling 3rd world countries to stop deforestation and then the biggest of those is doing it via a trade aggreement because it’s ‘economically suiting them’ :mad:
Indeed…:mad:
I’m a going to keep my thoughts on such silent at the moment…
For reason I can not say.
Heidi~
I find both of the above posts offensive. If you wish to discuss some issue of Canadian enviornmental attitudes, fine. There is no need to insult the President of The United States.
You have to understand that this aggreement is a 2 way street and nobody forced a gun to the head of the Canadians or the Mexicans to sign this agreement. They both get lots in return. I hardly think any Canadians are going cold due to the tar sands being used in this manner. It has enlivened there economy in the region.
Royal Dutch Shell is one of the biggest producters up there.
And from syncrudes own site it sounds as if they are enviromentally aware.
http://www.syncrude.ca/who_we_are/01_06.html#head09
Is the company regulated by any Federal and Provincial environmental acts and regulations?
Yes, Syncrude is regulated by more than a dozen government acts and is committed to performing at a level which exceeds the requirements of our environmental licences.
Did Syncrude create an environmental department because of these regulations/acts?
A decade before construction on the Syncrude plant began, we were already conducting benchmark studies to monitor physical and biological conditions, and planning ways to minimize our environmental impact. Professional staff were hired to implement protective measures with a clear mandate to ensure environmental standards were met or surpassed. Since then, both the base plant and additions have been built and operated on this premise.
What are Syncrude’s long term plans for the land it operates on?
Syncrude's long term plans call for returning the land to a stable, biologically self-sustaining state. This means creating a landscape that has a productive capability at least equal to its condition before operations began. We envision a mosaic landscape dominated by productive forests, wetland areas alive with waterfowl and grasslands supporting grazing animals. And we've already taken steps in this direction. For example, in February 1993, a herd of wood bison were moved to reclaimed land in a grazing research project in cooperation with the Fort McKay First Nation. Today, the herd numbers approximately 300 head.
IMHO if they can produce oil for $10 a barrel from a desolate place in Canada, and make money doing it then more power to them. And if NAFA says that they need to sell it to the USA so be it. The signed the contract called NAFTA.
I dont know where you got the idea that i insulted the President from, but i will apologise if what i posted came out that way. It is a known fact that he actively supports capitalism and i say ‘good for him’ 
. It is making your country enomically stronger and supporting the general population better through it.
I also said the Canada was stuck with a treaty that ‘it’ signed, hence they are as much to blame for not looking into the environmental risks of such an industry.
Personally i would like to see more time and money invested into alternative sources of fuel like solar power and vegetable oil (sounds silly, bit its a known fact a deisel engine will run on it with no side effects).
Frankly Sir I don’t think I did…
I reported a press release from the University of Alberta. In fact I made a point of refraining from giving my opinion. But it seems to me that your are not content unless everything you read fits into your little closed mind. Opinions… Freedom of speech. The first amendment. But I am beginning to think that you may be happier in a complete controlled state… what is next for you… Would you like to burn some books that don’t meet your criteria. MOAJC did what was right and pointed out other points of views in an intelligent matter… By the way I was going to refrain but now I’ll give you my opinion… I disagree with the release, yet I found valid points for people to ponder upon. As far as the President, I did not vote for him and I would never had and my opinion on that will never change. Yet again I believe he has handle many matters better then any other candidate we had. He also has done more damage the any other President in recent history other then Nixon.
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The news stories posted do not necessarily reflect the opinion of SFL or Team Phoenix Rising, they are for your information only.
There is no need to insult the President of The United States.
Let me do that then. The man is an idiot, and he is bringing worldwide condemnation / terrorism (delete as appropriate) down on a country that was created to stand for evertything that is good, and which has the power to bring about that good in the world.