Quick Facts
Free prior & informed consent
While they will always claim otherwise, pipeline companies and the crown have consistently failed to meaningfully consult with the first nations communities their projects run through and threaten the lives & culture of. The government and industries often only associate or negotiate with band councils, which are colonized indigenous arms of government that often don’t fully represent the interests of their people. In unceded territories, band council has no control or final say over use or development of the territory – these powers typically remain with hereditary leadership.
Water
It takes between 2-10 barrels of fresh water to extract & refine just 1 barrel of tarsands oil. Tarsands operations draw over 11,730L per second from the athabasca watershed. Water useds in operations is permanently contaminated and cannot be reused or recycled. the poisoned water is then stored in tailings ponds.
Tailings ponds in alberta, comprised of unrecoverable toxic waste water, can be seen from space. Tailings seepage from ponds are unknown, but low end estimates about 11 million litres per day.
