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Bringing Climate Justice Home: Tar Sands Refining and Air Quality in the Salt Lake Valley

Bringing Climate Justice Home: Tar Sands Refining and Air Quality in the Salt Lake Valley. Who we are. Peaceful Uprising is a climate justice group based in Salt Lake City, Utah.

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Bringing Climate Justice Home: Tar Sands Refining and Air Quality in the Salt Lake Valley

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  1. Bringing Climate Justice Home: Tar Sands RefiningandAir Quality in the Salt Lake Valley

  2. Who we are • Peaceful Uprising is a climate justice group based in Salt Lake City, Utah. • Climate justice is working at the intersections of environmental degradation and the racial, social, and economic inequities it perpetuates. • We work with the awareness that some communities are affected more than others by climate change and all its causes, and that the voices of many are marginalized. Those are the people we strive to take leadership from—the most affected, and the most disenfranchised.

  3. The campaign to stop tar sands mining—and refining—in Utah • A Canadian start-up called U.S. Oil Sands hopes to start mining tar sands on state lands in 2014. • This would be the first commercial tar sands operation in the U.S. • The tarry oil would be refined in North Salt Lake, and potentially also in a refinery in Green River. • We believe we have the power to stop it, if we work together as a community.

  4. The land at risk

  5. There is no reclamation.

  6. Sacrifice Zones • A sacrifice zone is a place where people’s health and environment are sacrificed for profit. • Do YOU livein a sacrificezone?

  7. Environmental injustice • The most historically marginalized communities often bear the brunt of the health impacts that stem from oil refining and other dirty industries. • Kids from low-income families have a disproportionate likelihood of being exposed to dangerous levels of toxins during their childhood. • People of all economic classes are at risk in the Salt Lake Valley, although wealthier folks may have more ability to move away from the refinery area if they choose.

  8. Communities at risk • Manchester, Texas, where the 90% Latino community is surrounded by refineries that spew at least 8 carcinogens into the air. • Detroit, Michigan, where people have watched as a mountain of petcoke—petroleum coke, a hazardous byproduct of tar sands—arose by the Detroit River. • North Salt Lake, Utah, where Chevron is already refining tar sands oil from Canada, and where other refineries like Tesoro are planning to expand to process tar sands oil.

  9. “Jobs can’t fix cancer.” • Refining tar sands oil leads to respiratory diseases, cancers, asthma, and many other health problems. • Residents of the Wasatch Front already die an average of 2 years early.

  10. What are tar sands? • Tar sands are sedimentary rocks that contain bitumen, a heavy hydrocarbon. • Bitumen can be turned into usable oil through a lengthy process that requires a tremendous amount of energy. • In the Colorado Plateau, tar sands deposits are typically as hard as asphalt.

  11. A toxic brew • Toxins like arsenic and mercury are present in tar sands deposits. • To make the bitumen liquid enough to flow, companies dilute it with a concoction of other dangerous substances—notably, carcinogens like benzene. • This aids in transport, but poses a severe threat in the form of a spill or daily air pollution.

  12. A scene from Exxon’s 2013 mayflower, arkansas tar sands spill

  13. Oil shale • Oil shale is very similar—it’s rock containing oil. • “It is basically premature oil with half the energy density of prunes, one fourth the energy content of recycled phone books. “ ~Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment • Like tar sands, it’s never been done commercially yet in the U.S. • The health and environmental impacts of mining and refining oil shale are roughly the same as for tar sands. • The oil gained from oil shale rock is called kerogen.

  14. Air contaminants • Sulfur dioxide • Nitrogen oxide • Carbon monoxide • Particulate matter • Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) • Benzene • Formaldehyde • Other toxins • CO2 • Ozone

  15. Health impacts • Cardiovascular disease • Respiratory problems • Fetal development issues • Cancers • Infertility • Immune suppression • Emotional disorders

  16. Ask the epa • The EPA itself says, “oil shale and tar sands development processes may have significant, adverse impacts to air quality, in particular by increasing levels of ozone and nitrogen deposition.” • Yet the EPA is not making any moves to block the refining here in the Wasatch Front. • Remember what it means to be a sacrifice zone?

  17. “Simple physics dictates that low energy fuels require themselves the application of large amounts of energy to render useful and will result in four to six times more CO2 and other pollution than conventionally drilled oil. “ ~Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment

  18. petcoke • A byproduct of bitumen, petcoke is used as a fuel. • It’s one of the most toxic fuels in the world. • A power plant was gearing up to use petcoke in the North Salt Lake area, but residents defeated this plan in 2009.

  19. Workers’ rights and public safety • “On average, a safety violation occurs every nine days at the five facilities bordering S.L., Davis counties.” ~Salt Lake Tribune • Chevron, Tesoro, and Holly are planning substantial expansions. Imagine how this will affect their safety records. • The 2009 Silver Eagle refinery explosion was just one of the most visible safety violations. • Chevron is notorious for safety violations, like the fire at its Richmond, California facility in 2012.

  20. Other major impacts • Air and climate impacts are not the only major impacts. • Others include: Using vast amounts of water, which we don’t have in the west. Polluting water sources with toxins, putting at risk the 40 million water drinkers who rely on the Colorado. Destroying vast portions of our most beautiful wilderness areas forever.

  21. Governmental corruption • The School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration, or SITLA, is the state agency leasing out lands for tar sands and oil shale development. • Currently they’ve leased 32,000 acres to U.S. Oil Sands, the company hoping to mine in eastern Utah in the coming year. • SITLA is charged with managing public lands for the long-term good of our public schools. However, the schools are only getting a tiny portion of the royalties from leases, and that the mining and refining would utterly devastate the resources we depend on—our water and air.

  22. Destroying our future Photo c/o Luca Galuzzi • Our wilderness heritage stands at risk also. • Beautiful national park views stand to be compromised by dusty air. • This would harm regional economies and livelihoods.

  23. Resistance! • We have a strong history of resistance to dangerous projects in Salt Lake. • The Richmond community forced Chevron to make amends, even if it was a case of far too little, far too late. • The mining, refining, and transport of tar sands is bringing communities together. Powerful coalitions are forming to protect our shared resources and ensure a livable future!

  24. Read More: • Deseret News, “Power Plant Won’t Use Petcoke in West Bountiful.”http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705286322/Power-plant-wont-use-petroleum-coke-in-West-Bountiful.html?pg=all • DesmogBlog, “Is Houston a Tar Sands Sacrifice Zone?”http://www.desmogblog.com/2013/05/23/houston-tar-sands-sacrifice-zone • Huffington Post, “Keystone XL Risks Harm to Houston Community: This Is Obviously Environmental Racism.”http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/27/keystone-xl-pipeline-houston-air-pollution_n_2964853.html • Huffington Post, “Petrochemical Bombardment on Latino Barrio Intensifies.”http://www.huffingtonpost.com/javier-sierra/petrochemical-bombardment_b_3786408.html?utm_hp_ref=tw

  25. LA Times: “A Slow-Motion Colorado River Disaster.”http://www.latimes.com/opinion/la-oe-mackey-colorado-river-drought-20130819,0,2138689.story • Mother Jones, “American Refineries Getting Ready for Dirty Tar Sands Oil.”http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/10/tar-sands-oil-refinery-detroit/ • New York Times, “A Black Mound of Canadian Oil Waste Is Rising Over Detroit.”http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/18/business/energy-environment/mountain-of-petroleum-coke-from-oil-sands-rises-in-detroit.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 • Oil Change International, “Petroleum Coke: The Coal Hiding in the Tar Sands.”http://priceofoil.org/2013/01/17/petroleum-coke-the-coal-hiding-in-the-tar-sands • Peaceful Uprising, “Tar Sands: Why We Fight.”http://www.peacefuluprising.org/tarsandsfacts

  26. Rolling Stone, “Tar Sands Blockade: The Monkey Wrenchers”http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/lists/the-fossil-fuel-resistance-meet-the-new-green-heroes-20130411/tar-sands-blockade-the-monkey-wrenchers-19691231 • Salt Lake Tribune, “Safety Records Show Hundreds of Violations at Utah Refineries.”http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/54844934-78/refineries-refinery-utah-oil.html.csp • Salt Lake Tribune, “Utah Protesters Decry Tar Sands in Chevron Refinery March.”http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/56051217-78/tar-sands-utah-salt.html.csp • Tar Sands Blockade, “Residents of Houston’s Toxic East End Speak Out.”http://www.tarsandsblockade.org/east-end-speak-out/ • Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment, “The Public Health Consequences of Utah’s Energy Policies.”http://www.energy.utah.gov/government/strategic_plan/docs/publiccomments/uphe10152010.pdf • Western Resource Advocates, “Air Quality, Oil Shale and Tar Sands.”http://www.westernresourceadvocates.org/land/pdf/air-osts-factsheet.pdf

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