Recognizing the Dangers and Drawbacks of America's Addiction to Oil

Press Release

* Mr. COHEN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the dangers of America's continued dependence on harmful fossil fuels and the urgent need to usher in a new era of clean, green energy. In his 2006 State of the Union Address, President George W. Bush poignantly noted that ``America is addicted to oil,'' an extremely destructive habit that continues to threaten our environment, national security, health, and economy. In light of the ongoing catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico, it is imperative that we recognize the dangers of our oil addiction and strive to actively break away from this costly and destructive dependence.

* Burning almost 20 million barrels of oil a day, the United States, which possesses a mere 2.2 percent of the world's oil reserves, consumes more than one quarter of the world's oil supply. This unrivaled compulsion to consume an increasingly limited oil supply has made the United States dependent on importing oil from foreign nations and producing environmentally destructive fuel sources.

* Most recently, our country has witnessed the growth of the Canadian tar sands industry. Tar sands are a combination of clay, sand, and bitumen that are found in great quantities under the boreal forest of Alberta. Through the use of large mining operations as well as extremely inefficient underground heating and production methods, companies are able to transform tar sands into a form of heavy oil that travels via pipeline from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico to be further refined for use in transportation fuels.

* The destructive effects of exploiting tar sands and building pipelines are varied and far reaching. These projects provide the United States a highly polluting fuel that when burned emits two to three times more carbon than the dirtiest fuels we use today. Widespread usage of tar sands will further ensure our dependence on fossils fuels that will pollute and contaminate our air and water. Furthermore, permitting tar sands mining and pipelines will significantly detract from the necessary drive to develop cleaner and more efficient fuel sources--sources that will not weaken our economy, threaten our national security, or harm the environment.

* Should tar sands pipelines be built, thousands of miles of land will be irrevocably scarred and poisoned. The pipelines required to transport the oil cut through sensitive ecosystems, cross rivers, and invade ranches and farms, which threaten water supplies, displace and endanger local wildlife, and put farmland out of production. Such pipelines also lead to a near inevitability of spills and leaks, the economic and environmental repercussions of which would be tremendous.

* In addition to the risks that arise from pipeline construction, the tar sands mining and production facilities will irreversibly devastate the environment. By creating a demand for tar sands, the Canadian Government will be encouraged to continue removing the boreal forest, destroying the natural habitats of countless animals and polluting both the air and water. Moreover, the growth in tar sands production facilities will necessitate the increased use of United States refiners which create far more air and water pollution in their surrounding communities.

* The construction of these pipelines should be immediately canceled, effectively taking a stand against the proliferation of this dirty fuel. Congress should also pass comprehensive climate and energy legislation that will hold the oil companies and similar corporations accountable for their pollution. Instead of building pipelines, we need to invest in American ingenuity and create a clean, green American energy economy.

* We must do everything in our power to end this oil addiction, and endorsing tar sands pipelines is a step in the wrong direction. Such a project would only continue to fuel the fires of our dependency. Now more than ever, we must take a stand.

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