GLOBE-Net, December 21, 2010 - The
Alberta oil sands may be a threat to water, wildlife and the
atmosphere, according to an independent panel report released today
by federal environment minister John Baird.
But the full dimensions of these threat are unclear,
notes the panel, because of inadequacies and gaps in the monitoring
and reporting of these environmental
impacts.
Commissioned by former federal environment minister
Jim Prentice two months ago, the expert panel chaired by Elizabeth
Dowdeswell, former executive director of the United Nations
Environment Program, was asked if there was proper scientific
oversight of the effects of oil sands development in northern
Alberta.
"Do we have a world-class monitoring
system in place? In short, no," said Ms
Dowdeswell.
But she said the possibility exists to vastly
improve the monitoring of water, land, air quality and wildlife for
any impacts caused by the drilling and digging for sandy bitumen
that is refined into the liquid gold that has driven the Canadian
economy.
"How Canada
addresses the environmental issues surrounding the current and
projected growth of the industry is of fundamental importance to
Canadian trade and national and international energy
security."
Both
the Alberta and federal governments have embraced
the findings of the report, which identified a "lack of leadership
and cooperation" for the patchwork of efforts to measure
environmental degradation caused by the oil sands.
Like many other reports,
most notably a comprehensive review published last week by the
Royal Society of Canada, this document suggests that there are both
strengths and weaknesses in the existing monitoring system and that
changes are needed.
The
panel
made one specific recommendation: "We
recommend that a shared national vision and management framework of
aligned priorities, policies and programs be developed
collaboratively by relevant jurisdictions and stakeholders."
The recommendation calls for an
adaptive, scientific and transparent approach. It also calls for an
implementation program with the following characteristics:
-
A management framework, coordination of respective
legislative mandates and overseen by a joint federal-provincial
board managed by a senior executive;
-
Expectations and accountabilities through performance
agreements linking activities and resources to results;
-
An independent external scientific advisory
committee
-
A collective commitment would be made to inclusivity of
all stakeholders
-
A dialogue process for continually considering
information, new knowledge and technological developments
-
A mechanism for dispute resolution be
developed.
"The establishment and
implementation of an effective oil sands monitoring program is
fundamental to the long-term environmental sustainability and
economic viability of a rapidly growing oil sands industry in
Canada," says the report.
Increasing regional, national and
international public awareness and concern related to the
credibility of the monitoring programs, accuracy of the scientific
reporting and overall environmental performance of the oil sands
industry is not just an Alberta issue, but a Canadian and
international issue as well.
Minister Baird welcomed the report
and suggested that the government is now prepared to act, although
no timeline was given, nor a specific indication of how the results
of the federal and provincial reports will be reconciled. (His
commentary is available here).
He noted that
the federal government has agreed on some principles to guide
our officials the design of a new monitoring system, expected
within 90 days. These include:
The full report is available for
download
See also
the GLOBE-Net editorial " Oil and Water Don't Mix
- But Can They
Co-Exist".