Dirty Oil, Dirty Air: Ottawa's broken pollution promise

This report analyzes air pollution in the tar sands region.

Key findings of the report include:

• There has been a recent spike in air pollution "exceedances" in the tar sands region from 47 in 2004 to 1,556 in 2009. "Exceedances" are counted when air monitoring stations in the tar sands region show actual air pollution to be higher than targets set by the Alberta government.
• Alberta has lower standards than the European Union, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and World Health Organization for what qualifies as an "exceedance".
• Between 2002 and 2008, tar sands facilities reported a near doubling of volatile organic compounds and particulate matter; a 50 per cent increase in nitrogen oxides; and a 14 fold increase in hydrogen sulphide emissions.

DirtyOilDirtyAir.pdf