Over the Edge + November 3, 2010 news 3 Birds Covered in Alberta Oil Hundreds of birds land in tailings pond HANNAH PETERSEN NEWS EDITOR Those happy commercials of Alberta Oil Sands workers enjoying idyllic nature scenes while promoting the sustainability of their projects might not be so accurate after all. Over 200 birds have landed in a Syncrude tailings pond. Tailings ponds are the collection of fine waste products suspended in water. Tailings are sometimes mixed with other materials like bentoinite which is used to form a thicker concentration that slows the release of the impact of the water to the environment. Approximately 230 birds had to be euthanized after coming into contact with toxins in the pond. While the Syncrude staff did everything they could to prevent the birds from landing in the death trap, their efforts were futile. Syncrude used air cannons, flare guns, and air horns to prevent the birds from landing but these tactics were unable to scare the birds off. The weather conditions may have played a factor in the bird’s reluctance to leave the toxic area as an icy storm may have made it difficult for the ducks to fly causing exhaustion among the flock. Syncrude was recently fined for a similar circumstance almost two years ago. The company was given a $3-million dollar fine for failing to take reasonable action to prevent the deaths of 1,600 ducks at another tailings pond in 2008. Alberta officials have noted their frustration with the situation especially since the incident in 2008 has only been settled in court just recently. Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach has said that the incident is “aggravating and frustrating.” This incident seems to be one of many blights that are affecting the image of the oil sands and the province of Alberta at large. Many environmental activists are advocating for the elimination of tailings ponds all together. The tailings ponds affect more than just bird populations, as toxins do make their way into surrounding eco-systems and downstream towards communities, as well as directly affecting bird populations. However, the number of tailings ponds is ever increasing with the current volume of tailings being somewhere around 840-billion litres. The tragic death of birds on these ponds highlights the negative environmental impact the oil sands process is reaping on Alberta ecosystems. A lack of will by both Alberta Government regulation and company compliancy is cited by many critics as a root cause of the uncontrolled environmental degradation of the tailings ponds. Alberta Minister of Environment Rob Renner says that there will be an investigation underway. One can only wonder how many investigations need to be conducted before serious action is taken to decrease the impact of such processes on the environment. Another oil sands victim Duel Disaster Strikes Indonesia ONLINE SOURCE Volcanic eruption occurs days after a tsunami kills over a hundred people HANNAH PETERSEN NEWS EDITOR At least 25 people were killed in Indonesia after one its most volatile volcano’s erupted on October 26, 2010. The volcanic mountain, which is 2,968 meters high, is home to many village settlements. When the volcano’s cone became obscured with spewing ash and smoke, thousands of villagers continued to flee the mountain in search of safety. Earlier, many people refused to leave their homes as they feared looting and other losses that might occur due to their sudden departure. However, the appearance of volcanic ash made it clear that Mount Merapi was no longer a hospitable environment. Volcanologists are worried that the current volcanic activity on the mountain is merely a foreshadow to a much larger explosion. Many fear that pressure continues to gather beneath the lava dome. To make matters worse, this recent natural disaster is coupled with a 7.7 magnitude earthquake that struck off the coast of Sumatra, about 1,400 kilometres from Merapi. The earthquake created a tsunami that left hundreds of people dead, injured, or stranded along a string of remote islands. Many of the deaths and injuries related to the volcanic explosion were due to panic, respiratory problems, and burns caused by extremely hot clouds of ash. Merapi is one of the most volatile volcanoes of Indonesia’s 129 active sites spread over 17,500 islands. Its last recorded activity occurred in 2006 when an avalanche of hot rocks and ash killed two people, and a similar eruption occurred in 1994 killing 60 people. TV footage showed officials carrying bodies out of homes on the mountainside to waiting vehicles. Reports claim that the mountain had rumbled for hours before spewing hot ash and debris into the air. Officials hope that the remainder of the pressure in the volcano erupts slowly as opposed to all at once, in one drastic eruption. Nevertheless, a disaster alert has been raised to its highest level and the remaining people the in surrounding area will be evacuated. Indonesia is highly prone to natural disasters because it is located within the ring of fire, a long stretch of continental unrest encompassing the Pacific ocean. The frequent movement and pressure of the tectonic plates in these areas create a high level of earthquakes and volcanic activity. The two natural disasters, while both occurring during a short period of time, are likely unrelated and the earthquake was not powerful enough to trigger volcanic activity. The earthquake also occurred along the same fault lines of the 2004 December tsunami that killed over 200,000 people. Effective warning systems are a challenge to implement because of a lack of warning time coupled with a reluctance for people to leave their homes and possessions. It would be almost impossible for an effective warning and disaster plan to be implemented in all of the remote island communities because the onset of a tsunami is usually too sudden for officials to take action. The darkness in the sky and the rumblings of the mountain were significant warnings of the volcano’s inevitable eruption, however, many people in the mountain villages were reluctant to leave their homes and crops and thus left a few adult family members behind. ONLINE SOURCE Mount Merapi eruption