Reports by Canadian Lawmakers, Scientists Say Oil Sands Development Harms Watershed

摘要

There is considerable evidence that oil sands operations in Canada's Alberta province are polluting the Athabasca River watershed, according to two reports issued in August—one by opposition party members in the House of Commons and the other by a team of scientists.rnIn a minority report on the effects of oil sands development on Canada's freshwater, issued Aug. 18, Liberal Party members on the Environment and Sustainable Development Committee said that experts who testified during a committee review of Canada's freshwater policies said the current approach to managing water takings from the Athabasca River is based on bureaucratic compromises rather than science-based policymaking.rnWatershed management policies also fail to consider past trends and the expected impacts of climate change on water levels, according to the minority report.