Getting the Oil Sands Facts Straight

BG:

The oil sands deposit covers an area that would equate to the size of England (54,132 square miles). For Americans without passports, that is the size of the state of New York. Of the total 170.4 billion barrels of remaining established reserves, about 80% is considered recoverable through in-situ (no tailings ponds and contrary to what is stated results in significantly lower GHG and energy intensity) the remaining 20% will be mined. Total estimated reserves are actually 1.7 trillion barrels but at this stage only 10% are recoverable at current technologies and prices.