One of the many problems with Bitumen is that it is thick. It is similar to asphalt and looks like tar.
As it moves through a pipeline it creates friction which in turn creates heat and guess what heat does to a pipeline?
It amplifies the corrosive quality of the sludge. Which means that there is a greater chance that there will be a leak.
In fact Keystone pipeline seemed to have made it a monthly goal to leak during the first year of production. They leaked 12 times in the first year and I have heard they did even better than that, I heard they leaked 14 times.
But wait a minute! The goal of oil production is NOT to leak right? Well, someone had better tell TransCanada because I think they may need to have an executive meeting about their goal setting. They got it all wrong.
Back to the Bitumen. So when this bitumen is transported through a pipeline it is transported using “secret” diluents, heat and then it is put under pressure. So basically what you have is a hot, fast, pressurized material which resembles sandpaper moving through a steel pipe. It is kind of like a sandblasting operation on the inside of the steel pipe.
But this is steel right? It should take anything. Surely they will make the pipeline thick.
Not so much, in an article by Anthony Swift it was estimated that the pipeline would be somewhere around 1/2″ thick. http://switchboard.nrdc.org/
Darlings, that is not enough steel to protect our rivers, aquifers and lakes from this poison.
The most dangerous aspect of Bitumen is that when it leaks into water it doesn’t rise to the top. It sinks. So there is no effective way to clean it.
Okay but enough of the facts lets go a bit into the world of fantasy and imagination to get a better picture of this threat.
Imagine our country is your home in a beautiful countryside. The splendor of nature is apparent every morning you look outside your window. The meadows awash with wildflowers litter the rolling hills. A crystal clear blue pond is filled with fish. The beautiful song of Meadowlarks lullaby the wildlife that roam calmly through your property. The lilacs awaken your senses with a fragrance that is mesmerizing.
Your home is furnished with velvet chairs, classic art and rich in color. The carpet is perfect, without a stain.
Then one day a neighbor asks to come over because they want to go help another neighbor. They need to cut down a path of trees to reach the neighbor. You see them dumping their trash in your pond, the wildlife starts to scatter, the meadowlarks stop singing, the lilacs wilt.
They come crashing through the door to your house saying that if you don’t let them walk through your house with their dirty shoes that they will claim eminent domain and seize your house. They trudge through your house ruining the carpet and velvet chairs as they leave their dirty tar sand foot print everywhere.
They push you aside, verbally abusing you and intimidating you. In desperation you ask them why they have chosen to do this. Why is this neighbor so important that they would have to ruin your paradise for them?
“It isn’t that we like that neighbor more than you.” They say as they pat you on the back. “It is that they money and they (China) will pay us for what we are transporting for them.”
People the most amazing fact about this Keystone Pipeline issue is that we even considered for a split second that we should allow this toxic pipeline to cross our country. It is a no brainer that this pipeline is a monster that could consume our ability to be a viable country.
There is NO benefit to our country.
DO NOT BELIEVE THE PROPAGANDA FLOODING THE MEDIA FROM THE REPUBLICANS AND THE OIL COMPANIES.
BECOME INFORMED!
BECOME EDUCATED AND THEN BECOME AN ACTIVIST!
Seriously our opposition of this pipeline may be the greatest gift you could give your grandchildren.
More information on Bitumen – http://www.notranscanadapipeline.com/what-is-bitumen
