I live in Fort McMurray. Some of you have read my previous diary about protesting in the region, and my suggestions of what to do. I was bored, and wondered if I should do an AMA(Ask Me Anything) about Fort McMurray, Alberta and the Oilsands within.
I've lived here 30 years, and know quite a bit about the processes involved, including but not limited to:
-Geological Testing
-Overburden Removal
-Initial Extraction(Mining and SAGD)
-Actual Extraction (The fun part with the machinery and the crushing and the boring part with the big kettle, then back to the fun with chemistry)
-The 'Chemistry Bits', aka 'Catalytic Cracking'
-'Fun' With Cokers.
-Transport (Pipelines, but not so much the rail stuff, for reasons)
-Environmental (Fisheries, Air Quality Monitoring, and Wildlife Deterrent)
-Life in one of the most expensive 'Work Camps' in North America.
Reason I want to do this is because, frankly, I'm tired of watching and reading and listening to people bloviate about this when they know nothing about how anything up here works. I will also not be an apologist for what is done up here. I will lay out the facts as best I can.
If you're gonna bitch and complain... At least have your damn facts right, is my opinion. Swear to FSM I see one more asshat call it the 'Tar Sands' with a snide tone of voice, I will beat them with a shovel until I can see the sunrise out the other side of their head, and the sun don't rise till late here right now.
Oh! Side note! I will try tp be gentle with my responses, but I guarantee nothing. I hope for humor, some amusing stories may be thrown in, but there will likely be a lot of sarcasm and snark. Possibly not directed at the questioners even!
Anyway, comment at the bottom or vote in the poll and, depending on if there's any interested parties/responses(I can really only check at night and first thing in the morning until my days off next week), I will set it up. Otherwise, I will try and PM people that ask, or send me a PM even, and I'll put it in the AMA if/when it starts!
Have fun kids!