The Mineable Oilsands Strategy (MOSS) released today proposes a fundamental shift in environmental policy. Alberta's current policy seeks to strike a balance between oilsands development and environmental protection. Mining has been permitted on the condition that rivers remain intact, the integrity of watersheds is maintained, and key wildlife movement corridors are preserved. These important land features are retained to assist in blending reclaimed land into the landscape when mining operations end. Under MOSS the strip-mining bitumen would be given priority over environmental protection.
"Albertans who value the integrity of the province's boreal forest and the people who live, fish, hunt and trap in the Athabasca region should be concerned about this Strategy," warns Chris Severson-Baker, Director of the Pembina Institute's Energy Watch Program. "Where in the past companies have been required to leave protective buffers on either side of the Muskeg River they will now be permitted, even encouraged to divert the river and mine right through the bitumen deposit that is underneath."
The Alberta Government should retract the MOSS, completely re-think it and only propose a new policy that guarantees the ecological integrity of the region is preserved.
The current oilsands policy was developed with stakeholder input in 1999. Called the Regional Sustainable Development Strategy (RSDS) it seeks to balance development and environmental protection. The Cumulative Environmental Management Association (CEMA) is a multi-stakeholder and consensus based organization that was established to develop policy to achieve the goals of the RSDS.
"MOSS is a major blow for CEMA." Says Chris Severson-Baker, who represents the Pembina Institute on the Board of CEMA, "The Pembina Institute and many other environmental groups, First Nation organizations, companies, and provincial and federal agencies have invested 6 years in this organization and its efforts to develop policy to protect the landscape, only to have the Alberta government unilaterally change the rules."
The Alberta Government should retract MOSS, and only propose a new policy that guarantee's the ecological integrity of the region is preserved.
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For more information contact:
Chris Severson-Baker, Director of the Energy Watch Program
Phone: 403.269.3344 ext. 101
Cell: 403.612.9159
www.pembina.org
