tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4804513671389132165.post362883721286243608..comments2023-07-25T07:08:51.934-06:00Comments on Bill Longstaff: Northern Gateway and ghosts of the Exxon ValdezBill Longstaffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15883751372039947365noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4804513671389132165.post-74636815081192884632012-06-15T14:27:23.413-06:002012-06-15T14:27:23.413-06:00Our centre-right newspaper, the Victoria Times-Col...Our centre-right newspaper, the Victoria Times-Colonist, has run a series of brilliant exposes into the coastal bitumen supertanker threat.<br /><br />They have convincingly made out that - <br /><br />- it's not a question of "if" but "when" we have to deal with a major tanker catastrophe<br /><br />- bitumen, unlike the conventional crude loaded on the Exxon Valdez, doesn't float nor does it break up as oil does. It congeals and sinks to the bottom which, in the proposed routes, means 600 feet down, perhaps deeper. There the bitumen would gradually release the carcinogens, heavy metals and other embedded toxins into the marine ecosystem - for decades.<br /><br />- Enbridge has an oil spill response fleet but it can only operate in calm conditions (a rarity in the Hecate) and can only tackle conventional oil spills. It can do nothing, not a damned thing, about a bitumen spill.<br /><br />- EnviroMin Kent admits his department has no idea how to deal with a bitumen spill but says they're "working on it."<br /><br />- the bitumen supertankers are many times larger than the Exxon Valdez.<br /><br />- in a bitumen spill, the sludge quickly separates from the condensate. The condensate evaporates into a toxic and explosive smog. The Kinder-Morgan supertanker traffic transiting the Vancouver inner harbour via the treacherous Second Narrows could not only contaminate the harbour for generations but release a toxic cloud that could force the evacuation of Vancouver and other nearby municipalities for a number of days.<br /><br />- supertanker operators have a liability cap. When their insurance runs out, they're off the hook. Enbridge is similarly protected by a liability cut out. That means that virtually all of the economic losses and environmental costs would have to be borne by the British Columbia taxpayers or the victims themselves. Neither Alberta nor the oil industry bear any liability.<br /><br />This is the work of a fiend and his minions.The Mound of Soundhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09023839743772372922noreply@blogger.com