Tar Sands Perpetuate Petro-Addiction

In a 2006 Rolling Stone interview, Al Gore infamously likened the practice of extracting oil from tar sands to “junkies find[ing] veins in their toes” to inject heroin. Gore’s image simply extends to its logical conclusion George Bush’s 2006 State of the Union “addicted to oil” metaphor. Clean, renewable energy represents a healthy cure for petro-addiction. Tar sands, which increase the carbon intensity of petroleum extraction, represent an exacerbation of the climate-changing addiction–kind of like trying to cure heroin addiction by injecting arsenic. CWR co-host Bill Baue speaks with Shelley Alpern, director of social research and advocacy at Trillium Asset Management, about her shareholder activism asking oil companies such as ConocoPhillips and BP to assess and disclose the social, environmental, and financial risks of tar sands exploitation. We also hear from the Environmental Integrity Project and Environmental Defence Canada about their brand new report, Tar Sands: Feeding U.S. Refinery Expansions With Dirty Fuel.

Shelley Alpern of Trillium Asset Management

SocialFunds.com article with interview transcript

Investor Statement to BP on Tar Sands

Environmental Integrity Project-Environmental Defence Canada report: Tar Sands: Feeding U.S. Refinery Expansions With Dirty Fuel

CWR Headlines:

Shell frets over Canadian tar sands
Postal services around the globe to begin tracking emissions
Labor organization charges the US violates rights of workers
James Bond to go after greenwashing villain

Corporate Watchdog Report: Commentaries from the Business Ethics Network: Listen or read (thanks to CSRwire.com for posting text of CWR commentaries.)

Susan Casey-Lefkowitz of the Natural Resources Defense Council with NRDC’s take on tar sands.

NRDC

NRDC Stop Dirty Fuels Campaign

About Bill Baue

Bill Baue is Co-Director of Sea Change Media, a non-profit that makes connections in the shift to social, environmental, and economic sustainability. He co-hosts/produces Sea Change Radio, a nationally syndicated show that podcasts globally.