Friends of the Lubicon
PO Box 444 Stn D,
Etobicoke ON M9A 4X4
Tel: (416) 763-7500
Email: fol (at) tao (dot) ca
www.lubicon.ca
June 23, 2005
Three ominous developments have occurred during the past week with regard to the Sawn Lake oil sands project proposed by Surge Global Energy (OTCBB:SRGG), Deep Well Oil and Gas (OTCBB:DWOG), Paradigm Oil and Gas (OTCBB: POGI) and Welwyn Resources Ltd. (TSX-V:POE).
It looks increasingly likely that the companies involved intend to begin tearing apart Lubicon Traditional Territory without Lubicon consent and without even responding to Lubicon requests to meet prior to beginning operations.
Surge Global Energy appears to be taking the lead in the project.
Last week Surge Global Energy announced a new deal with Calgary-based Genoil, Inc. (OTCBB:GNOLF) to build a major 10,000 barrel per day Commercial Upgrader at the Sawn Lake oil sands project in the heart of Lubicon Traditional Territory.
An oil sands upgrader will be yet another addition to the environmental impact of the project being contemplated.
Genoil’s upgrader is designed to process heavy oil to turn it into a lighter-grade oil which can flow more freely through pipelines to market. The companies have provided no information on the water use and other environmental consequences of setting up a new oil sands upgrading facility on Lubicon lands.
Even without an upgrading facility on site, oil sands extraction alone usually involves injecting large quantities of steam into the ground in order to heat the oil sands, thereby loosening it and making the oil flow. Large amounts of potable water — up to 4 barrels of water for every one barrel of oil extracted — are used in this manner across Alberta already. Even where water is recycled at least one barrel of potable water is wasted for every one barrel of oil extracted. No one knows for sure what the impacts on the ecosystem and the water table may be of pumping large amounts of steam into the ground.
Deepening their commitment to using steam-injection (or "thermal recovery") methods to exploit the resource at Sawn Lake, Surge Global Energy also announced last week that it had retained Edward A. Howard to "refine [their] drilling and thermal recovery program" at Sawn Lake. Mr. Howard reportedly is heavily involved in steam-assisted oil-sands exploitation methods — precisely the kind of exploitation that concerns the Lubicon people because of its high water and energy use. Mr. Howard is also credited with extensive involvement in the Shell in-situ plant near Lubicon territory. Lubicon supporters may remember that in order to carry out its steam-assisted oil sands operation the Shell plant drained so much water from a nearby lake that the lake froze solid in the winter, killing all of the fish.
Lastly, on Monday June 20 Surge reportedly told investors that it has all its permits in place and intends to begin drilling on Lubicon lands in the next couple of weeks.
While there is still question whether they have the required drilling permits in place (or have even applied for it), their eagerness to proceed without ever responding to the Lubicon Nation’s request for a meeting demonstrates Surge Global Energy’s apparent disinterest in a peaceful, non-confrontational resolution of this dispute.
fol-request at masses.tao.ca