As tar sands extraction continues and proposals for expanded pipelines from Canada into the U.S. form a backdrop, the Great Lakes themselves could become the next frontier for moving crude oil to a vast Midwest refinery network.As companies jockey to take advantage of the demand for this unique and significantly cheaper crude, pressures are mounting to find economical ways to move it out — and Great Lakes vessel shipping is emerging as a contender. Already, plans are in the works to dramatically increase the flow of tar sands crude to the Midwest as early as next year; permitting is sought for a $25 million loading dock on Lake Superior to ship the crude in 2015; and a tar sands shipping route has been mapped across the waters of the Great Lakes.

The above excerpt is taken from     http://www.greatlakes.org/tar-sands/report



All,

I think we have all heard of Canadian tar sand oil by now.  It is quite different from the "sweet west Texas crude" in character.  It is a much heavier product, and it carries far more contaminants that the sweet stuff.  Many are concerned about the prospects of the Keystone XL pipeline that would transport the tar sand oil from Alberta to the Gulf coast for export.

Less know is that the Canadian tar sand oil is in wide, and growing, use today along the Great Lakes and beyond.  A case in point is the BP refinery in Whiting, Indiana, a few miles from the city of Chicago.  It is bringing online modifications to triple its refining capacity, and to use Canadian tar sand oil.  The BP refinery is the largest along the Great Lakes, indeed one of the largest in the world.  However, there are many other refineries along the Great Lake shore lines both in the US and in Canada.  All of these use or plan to use tar sand oil.  This oil is moving to these refinery locations now by existing pipelines and rail car.

What's different?  As Michigan experienced when a tar sand oil carrying pipeline spilled into the Kalamazoo river, the tar sand oil doesn't float.  It sinks in a mucousy mush on the bottom of the streams beds and marshes and is very difficult to contain and clean up.  Rail cars moving this stuff are also subject to accident as happened when an entire train load, left untended, derailed in the center of the small town of Lac-Megantic, Quebec, in July 2013 and killed 47 people, and leveled the business district.  Two of five tank cars that exploded were still burning 36 hours later.  There have been many other petro- rail accidents since.  For example: early November, rural Alabama (crude oil from North Dakota Bakken shale, 20 tank cars derailed and exploded), early November Benica, CA (rail cars carrying petroleum coke derail, no spill), mid-October, Gainford, Alberta (13 cars of a train carrying liquid petroleum gas and crude, explosions and fire). The producers find that rail shipping arrangements can be put in place much faster than new pipelines.  These trains roll through towns small and large across the country.  People nearby have no idea what is being carried.

Before refining tar sand oil must be processed with steam to remove the more volatile hydrocarbons so they can be refined.  The leftover product is called petroleum coke, a carbon-heavy powdery solid, often contaminated by heavy metals including mercury.  Pet coke is generally not burned in the US where pollution controls would make its use expensive.  Instead it is purchased by traders and sold overseas to be burned in developing countries with lax pollution controls. This propels greenhouse gases and soot into the atmosphere to the detriment of all of us.

A large amount of pet coke was recently piled in Detroit near the Detroit river.  An outcry followed to remove the stuff.  Now the BP refinery in Whiting Indiana is shipping pet coke to nearby Chicago.  Another outcry followed.  This material shouldn't be burned anywhere.  But it is, and it is being shipped by water.  The Great Lakes system is one of the largest resources of fresh water on the planet and is fragile.  A spill of tar sand oil, "sweet crude, " or pet coke could be devastating.

Please see:  http://takeaction.greatlakes.org/site/MessageViewer?em_id=10861.0&dlv_id=10784

Mercury is one of the contaminants in tar sand oil and in petroleum coke.  Jacqui has initiated a petition to have Lake Michigan declared a mercury free zone.  Please sign the petition if you haven't already done so:  http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/lake-michigan-mercury/?source=search

Please tell your friends.

Take care and have a happy Thanksgiving.

Blair