Oil Sand in Alberta - 1133 Words

Alberta is a province that is rich and abundant in natural resources such as oil sands. What are oil sands? Oil reserves play a very important role in the Canadian economy. Oil sands from areas such as Alberta have been described as â€Å"Canadians greatest buried energy treasure† by popular magazines such as Time magazine. Oil sands are a naturally existing mixture of sand, clay and other materials such as water and bitumen. Some materials in oil sands including bitumen are highly viscous that they need to be treated and refined before they can be used by industrial sites in order to produce fuels such as gasoline. Oil sands can be refined to make oil. There are approximately 170.4 billion barrels of oil that can be used in the Northern part of Alberta. Approximately 80% of the oil sands can be recovered through the In-situ production. 20% of the 80% is oil that can be recovered and purified by mining. Bitumen, a highly viscous material in oil sands is found by mining 90% of the time. While oil sands have a positive effect on us, it has a very negative effect on the environment. Oil sands have a very negative effect on aquatic ecosystems all around the world. Oil sands use up a lot of the water and energy. At present, two to five barrels of natural and recycled water are needed for every barrel of oil produced for mining. Oil sand project affect the natural aquatic ecosystems. Some of the negative effects oil sands have on aquatic ecosystems are that sometimes oil sandsShow MoreRelatedThe Oil Sands Of Alberta1194 Words   |  5 Pages Alberta Oil Industry EC239 section C Instructor: Sharif Khan GROUP MEMBERS Jiayu Weng 133004040 Liang Zhang 114161410 Jingsong Sun 114161870 Brent Bogdon 130177700 Thurairajah Thilakxshan 130937440â€Æ' I. INTRODUCTION The Oil Sands of Alberta have been a scene of controversy since the commercial production of oil began there in 1967. The Oil Sands are underground deposits made up of a mixture of sand, water, clay, and bitumen (1). The oil extracted from these reserves in Alberta is an integral sourceRead MoreU.s State Department For Petroleum Extracted From The Alberta Oil Sands1730 Words   |  7 Pages- but takes a more direct route. The XL pipeline would allow for an increased supply of oil from Canada. The Keystone XL pipeline is a proposed 1,179-mile (1,897km) pipe that would run from the oil sands in Alberta, Canada, to Steele City, Nebraska, where it could join an existing pipe. It could carry 830,000 barrels of oil each day. The United States and Canada are crisscrossed by thousands of miles of oil and gas pipelines, but none have drawn the attention and political controversy of KeystoneRead MoreSocial Responsibility in the development of Albertas Oil Sands1401 Words   |  6 PagesIntroduction: The oil sands development in northern Alberta has become a hot bed for debate between producers and environmental groups. With worldwide water crisis rapidly developing the use of water in the development Alberta’s oil sands begs the question, are the oil sands in northern Alberta being developed with social responsibility in mind? Social responsibility is a balance companies must maintain between people, the planet and profit. Propaganda produced by environmental agencies and oil companiesRead MoreHuman Dependence On The Tar Sands1580 Words   |  7 PagesHuman dependence on the tar sands will be monumental in the future with the end of conventional oil. The tar sands project in Alberta is currently one of the greatest industrial projects throughout human history. At this time, the oil sands in Alberta are the second largest producers of oil in the world. The oil sands in Alberta carry more than 170 billion barrels of oil, which is enough to sustain Canada s oil demand for more than 15 decades. However, oil sands development over the years has shownRead MoreOil Sands Essay1219 Words   |  5 PagesCanada has always had extensive deposits of oil sands, and has been a fascination to the explorers and settlers of earliest Canada, when Europeans saw how First Nations people used it to water proof their birch bark canoes. That being said, the majority of oil sands in Canada are contained in Alberta. Alberta’s oil reserves play an important role in the Canadian and global economy, supplying stable, reliable energy to the world. Alberta s oil sands have been described by Time Magazine as CanadaRead MoreEnvironmental Assessment Of The Alberta Tar Sands1368 Words   |  6 Pagesare going to talk about the Alberta tar sands development, and about how they are not effectively protecting their environment. This has already led to negative effects in the surrounding areas. These effects will only continue to worsen, if nothing is done to slow down, or fur ther prevent them from happening. The Alberta tar sands, is currently the largest construction project taking place in the world, and as such is a very important development. The Alberta tar sands are a necessary evil, becauseRead MoreOil Sands Essay789 Words   |  4 Pagesimportance of oil in our society is so great that it affects developed and developing countries. It is a huge contributor to economic growth and environmental destruction. Although the Alberta Oil Sands has destroyed acres of local and global (indirectly) ecosystems, it has achieved and ensured that Canada stays as an economic power. The economical, cultural, and political benefits the oil sands give to Canada makes it an irreplaceable asset to our nation and our global community The oil sands have alwaysRead MoreThe Oil Sands And Its Effects On The Economic, Environmental, And Equity Development Of Canada1118 Words   |  5 Pagestime. Through the progression of the tar sands, Canada has found itself at the forefront for domestic oil production. The history of the Canadian oil sands has changed, the economic, environmental, and equity development of Canada. The oil sands is primarily located in northeastern Alberta. The tar sands are located in the three main deposits: the Athabasca, Peace River, and Cold Lake. Tar sands, also known as oil sands and heavy oil, are a mixture of 84-88% sand and mineral – rich clays, 4 % water andRead MoreThe Alberta Tar Sands Development1368 Words   |  6 Pagesam going to talk about the Alberta tar sands development, and about how they are not effectively protecting their environment. This has already led to negative effects in the surrounding areas. These effects will only continue to worsen, if nothing is done to slow down, or further prevent them from happening. The Alberta tar sands, is currently the largest construction project taking place in the world, and as such is a very important development. The Alberta tar sands are a necessary evil, becauseRead MoreAthabasca Oil Sands Essay1394 Words   |  6 PagesThe Athabasca oil sands are the second largest producer of crude oil in the world, with a surface area of approximately 100 000 square kilometres (Anderson, Giesy Wiseman, 2010). The Alberta Energy and Utilities Board estimates that the oil sands contains approximately 1.7 trillion barrels of crude bitumen, however only 19% can be ultimately recovered (Raynolds, Severson-Baker Woynillowicz, 2005; Humphries, 2008). The availability of recoverable bitumen makes Canada’s oil sands deposit larger