EDMONTON — The Canadian government says it lacked the scientific evidence to determine if oilsands tailings ponds were leaking into waterways and hurting fish. But the government says it continues to work on methods to determine if chemicals associated with bitumen in groundwater are natural, or the result of industry. The government has provided a response to a call from the environmental arm of NAFTA to explain what Canada is doing to stop oilsands tailings ponds from leaking into Alberta waterways. It says the federal government conducted “proactive enforcement activities” at various tailings ponds between 2009 and 2014. The tailings ponds contain toxic materials including bitumen, naphthenic acids, cyanide, and heavy metals.

Source: National Post November 11, 2017 23:35 UTC