This week I read about tar sands, particularly in South Portland. An oil company called ExxonMobil is attempting to turn South Portland into a shipping port for tar sands. On November 5th there will be a citywide vote. If this passes, tar sands will cause more chemicals in the air, new smokestacks, a new oil station, and increase in the risk of spills from the oil tanks exporting the tar sands from South Portland. Overall, the tar sands will severely harm the environment, not only in South Portland but also surrounding cities. ExxonMobil and its supporters want to create this tar sand port solely to profit themselves. So, the town of South Portland has come up with about 3800 signatures, leading the movement to pass the Waterfront Protection Ordinance. Their involvement shows how important this issue is to the citizens of South Portland.

“The oil sands are the fastest growing source of greenhouse gas emissions in Canada.” The oil sand are also more toxic than crude oil. Therefore, this is a very important issue that needs to be addressed immediately. It also shows that this isn’t just an issue in South Portland, it is happening all over the continent, including Canada. We should be focused on stopping ExxonMobil but also trying to decrease the amount of chemicals harming the environment from tar sands across the world.

10/2 Tar Sands Hannah

This week, Ms. McWilliams assigned us a reading about tar sands. This is thick, refined oil deep in the ground. Many countries desire this oil, but it as not easily transported, like conventional crude oil. Currently, there is a debacle of Exxon Mobile and the American Petroleum Institute versus the citizens of South Portland. These citizens are fighting for a protection ordinance against the tar sands exportation. They are rallying for support, and ask each of us to consider the cons to this idea.

To protect their city, the citizens have created a pamphlet of pros and cons for this establishment. A pro included the millions made in profit, while their cons included the environmental impact that would proceed the exportations. Most of their cons hit home with the citizens, by asking them to protect their beautiful city.

One of their main concerns is the waterfront. This would be the area most impacted. According to the article, Exxon already has a permit to establish the exportation, but the fight is not over. The advocates express their concern with the pollution within the air. There were very powerful and intellectual arguments being brought to life in these pamphlets. One was the concern of benzine, thought to be associated with the cause of cancer, and the other chemicals that would be emitted into the air.

A quote that stood out to me is excerpted from the little book from oilsandsrealitycheck.org. It states that, "carbon emissions from the production and processing of oil sands have more than doubled in the last decade and are on track to double again." This statement was appalling to me. It made me realize that if the emissions are raising at such a rapid pace, why should we extract more chemicals and pollute the air more than we already have? This scared me enough to believe that we should NOT allow the exportation and extraction of the tar sands.