The feds seem to be taking a role supportive of the Albertan provincial government in respect of oil sands development.
In a recent study, University of Alberta biologists and ecologists concluded that measured quantities of 13 polluants (lead, cadmium..) were at concerning levels along stretches of the Athabasca River, impacted by oil sands extraction projects. Downstream levels exceeded upstream levels indicating that it was the projects themselves - and not natural processes - that were responsible for leaching the contaminants into the riverine ecosystems.
Unfortunately, the feds who should be protecting the Public Domain and working for the Public Good appear to be riding shotgun for the Oil Patch (Harper's home province):
"Earlier this summer the House of Commons Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development decided to pull its much-awaited report on the impact of bitumen development on water. Astonishingly, an official parliamentary document on this particular issue will no longer be released. As tar sands ‘truth-seeker’ Andrew Nikiforuk explains, “the parliamentarians even destroyed draft copies of their final report.”
Citizens, this is not a government acting in a transparent fashion! They have been elected for one purpose: defending the Public Domain and promoting the Public Good and they act in a totally contrary fashion: promoting and defending the interests of an entitled few..
Is this situation tolerable in a viable democracy?
