Your Aug. 3 editorial, “Untimely blow for pipelines,” illustrates the need for further discussion on this and related topics. Dilbit spills like Michigan or Saskatchewan aren’t untimely blows for pipelines, but are timely reminders of poorly thought-out, badly maintained and mismanaged pipeline projects. And judging by the hundreds of spills every year, this is worrying.
While I’m no expert, it’s my experience that pipeline opponents seem far more knowledgeable about the properties of the fluids being transported, the technical aspects and limitations of pipeline design, construction, engineering, operation and maintenance; and the economic losses and environmental consequences/difficulties of containing and cleaning up spills. Pipeline proponents seem to narrow and fixate their interests, focusing towards the financial benefits for the petroleum/pipelines-related industries, and vigorously suppress discussion of anything else.
Before constructing more pipelines we need full public discussions on exporting dilbit which is dangerously difficult to contain when spilled, and requires Alberta to import diluent which also has dangers. Why doesn’t Alberta, at the very least, partially upgrade our bitumen into something safer and easier to manage than dilbit? If we upgraded bitumen here, we’d also be automatically doubling our oil exports without building any new pipelines, as we wouldn’t be pumping all that extra diluent throughout the system.
More questions could include but aren’t limited to: How safe is it to send dilbit through old pipelines designed for natural gas? How would Lethbridge residents feel about a dilbit pipe crossing the Oldman River and its numerous tributaries upstream of Lethbridge? Are the dozens of permanent jobs created worth the risks of each project? How much more money will these pipelines actually bring into our province? Are the pipes manufactured in China? If we wouldn’t export our oil to Hitler, why would we want to fuel human wrongs in China with our oil? Wouldn’t we rather encourage the Chinese to develop sustainably without oil?
Since most Albertans are oil/gas consumers, how much more will Albertans be paying for our oil/gas locally if the pipelines allow oil companies to fetch higher world prices? How will increased petroleum exports and prices affect other Alberta industries? Why hasn’t Alberta taken advantage of our local discounted prices and built a plastics/petrochemicals industry, producing more profitable value-added products that are safer to export? Why are we overreliant on petroleum and why haven’t we diversified? Why don’t we start using our brains, instead of depending on pipe dreams of pipeline construction?
Atul Jain
Organizer for Citizens Advocating Use of Sustainable Energy
Calgary