Immigration and the Environment.
There are those who argue that we should lock down the borders because of their concern that immigrants would bring more pollution. But if these people are really so concerned about the environment, then they should focus on what is happening in Alberta, where that government is giving away rights to mine oil out of tar pits to oil companies.
The danger is that we would wind up passing the buck for cleaning up this mess thousands of years down the road to future generations. As the article notes, the remains of these pits would be visible from satellite 1,000 years from now. And not only that, it would mean that Canada would produce 100 million tons of carbon, meaning that it would miss its carbon targets by 2012. And furthermore, it would drastically increase the cancer rates of people who live downriver from the operations.
The burden of proof should be on BP and other oil industries to come up with a plan that is environmentally safe. First, they should either prove that their techniques will not create cancer for nearby communities or create safeguards against that sort of thing happening. Secondly, they should come up with a plan to clean up their mess after they are done with it. Thirdly of all, they should come up with a plan to reduce or offset the carbon emissions that would result from the operations.
We all agree that natural resources can and should be used. But the problem is that they have to be used responsibly, or not be used at all. There is too much at stake in the global warming battle for us to accept the same tired old politics as usual here -- if such a plan is proposed for our country, then our policymakers should ask the tough questions of the oil companies and force them to meet the burden of proof to show that their projects are safe for the environment.
Obamathon
