Land of Tar Lakes

摘要

Canada is blessed with 3 million lakes, more than any country on earth-and it may soon start manufacturing new ones. The oil sands industry is in the throes of a major expansion, powered by C$20 billion ($19 billion) a year in investments. Companies including Syncrude Canada, Royal Dutch Shell, and ExxonMobil affiliate Imperial Oil are running out of room to store the contaminated water that is a byproduct of the process used to turn bitumen-a highly viscous form of petroleum-into diesel and other fuels. By 2022 they will be producing so much of the stuff that a month's output of wastewater could turn New York's Central Park into a toxic reservoir 11 feet deep, according to the Pembina Institute, a nonprofit in Calgary that promotes sustainable energy.