What You're Saying: Land use

Oil sands production, in particular mining operations, has an impact on the landscape. Some participants in the canadasoilsands.ca discussion forum said they are concerned about potential damage to the ecosystem, while others debated whether it is possible to reclaim land after it has been mined.

“…there is already a lot of protected area in north eastern Alberta. However, it does not contain all the different kinds of ecosystems that occur in the area. Wood Buffalo is a wonderful park but does not contain the same kinds of forest as the area in the oil sands area. That is why more is needed.” (June 25, 2008)
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“I am well aware of the supposed plans to “reclaim” the waste ponds and recreate the forests, but I am more than skeptical about the likelihood of success with these endeavours…the huge areas of wetlands and forests lost to oil sands developments will constitute a very significant and permanent loss of wildlife habitat in northern Alberta…” (June 24, 2008)
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“I have seen the reclaimed land after oilsand development first hand and, to be honest, I did not realize it until two years after I moved to Fort McMurray. What used to be huge strip mines and pits now is lush boreal forests.” (June 29, 2008)
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