ABOUT THE PROPOSED PROJECTS

Shell Oil's proposed tar sands expansion projects is coming up for public review Oct. 29.

 

jackpine mine expansion

 

The Jackpine mine expansion would include additional mining areas and associated processing facilities, utilities and infrastructure. The project would be located about 70 km north of Fort McMurray on the east side of the Athabasca River. The expansion project would increase bitumen production by 100,000 barrels per day, bringing production at the mine to 300,000 barrels per day and extend the life of the mine to 2049.

​​​​​​​​​The expansion will disturb 12,719 ha of land by mining and related activities and mine out 21 kilometres of the Muskeg River, a culturally important river system to ACFN..  The Jackpine Mine Expansion will create a pit lake in its final stages that once full in 2065, will cap 486 billion litres of mature fine tailings. Furthermore the greenhouse gas emissions from the Jackpine expansion total 2.36 Mt CO2e/year,representing an increase of 5.2% in oil sands emissions (based on 2009) or 562,000 cars on the road.

Overall, ACFN is concerned this project will impact their ability to exercise treaty rights in a meaningful way into the future. There are also concerns that the regulatory process does not meet ACFN’s need in terms of a proper assessment of impacts to rights. ACFN has no assurance that the environment and treaty rights can be protected because Alberta is doing a poor job of enforcing environmental protection with the companies and because Shell has not done a good job of meeting past commitments to ACFN (read more here).

• Area used for Treaty Rights; Lack of assessment/protection of Treaty Rights in regulatory process; Direct and cumulative effects on ACFN’s Treaty Rights
• Located within an ACFN cultural use zone identified by ACFN to Alberta as an area that requires greater involvement of ACFN in management.
• ACFN Member trapline directly affected and area is used for Treaty Rights by other ACFN members
• Overlaps woodland caribou herds and will affect caribou habitat
• JPME will interfere significantly with the health of the McClelland Lake Wetland Complex by affecting over 2000 ha, including 642 ha of lenticular patterned fen – also serious reclamation concerns
• Migratory birds – inadequate environmental assessment, probability of significant effects on habitat and individual birds
• The JPME will affect the use of the muskeg river basin as a wildlife corridor
• Health concerns
• Water quality and Athabasca River levels
• Shell’s poor track record with past approvals and ACFN agreements

For more information, including submissions and supporting documentation, please visit the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency website here.