Oil Sands Question and Response (OSQAR) Blog

Oil sands or tar sands? Actually, it’s neither

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We know they’re found in Alberta’s north. We know they’re an important part of the Canadian economy. But the fact of the matter is, most of us don’t know what to call them. Oil sands, tar sands, which is it? Truthfully, it’s neither. Find out why in this article from Commonsense Canadian.

Petroleum coke: Pretty? No. Useful? Yes.

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A large pile of petroleum coke in Michigan captured public attention recently on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border.

Oil sands mining: when getting older means getting better

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The year was 1967. The Beatles had just released Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Actor Dustin Hoffman was making a name for himself as The Graduate. And Canada was celebrating its 100^th birthday.

Is bitumen really energy’s corn dog?

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We consume all kinds of junk these days: junk food, junk television and even junk news (unless you really believe that supermarket tabloid about Bat Boy lurking out there in the night). 

Oil sands: A different perspective

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Now here’s something you don’t see every day: oil sands from space! Using a series of satellite images, NASA allows us to get a bird’s-eye view of how the Athabasca oil sands region has changed since 1984.

Are bitumen refineries harmful to community health?

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“Come and listen to a story ‘bout a man named Jed,
A poor mountaineer, barely kept his family fed,
Then one day he was shootin’ at some food,
When up from the ground came a bubblin’ crude
Oil that is - black gold - Texas tea.”

Pipeline opponent claims corrode the facts

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An increasingly common concern made about proposed pipelines built to carry crude oil derived from the oil sands is that the pipes will be more prone to leaks.

Alberta's burning question

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Protracted controversy over the proposed Northern Gateway and Keystone XL pipelines have re-ignited arguments about whether Alberta should be refining its own oil rather than shipping it raw to other countries.

Celebrity involvement in the energy debate: style or substance?

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If you saw media coverage of last year’s White House protests against the Keystone XL pipeline, you were more likely to learn that Lois Lane (Margot Kidder), the Sundance Kid (Robert Redford) and the mermaid from Splash (Darryl Hannah) are all against it, than to get any deep insight into the project’s complex design and potential social, economic and environmental implications.

How an in situ facility is like an all-inclusive vacation resort

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What’s the difference between an all-inclusive vacation resort and a steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) in situ oil sands facility? Not a lot, really. Both are hot and steamy, involve copious amounts of oil and operate a full schedule of activities around the clock.