Canadian bishop calls for curbs on oil exploration

January 27, 2009

Bishop Joseph Luc Bouchard of St. Paul, Alberta, has released a pastoral letter arguing that there is a "serious moral problem" involved in the rapid exploration of the oil-rich sands in the Canadian region. "I am forced to conclude that the integrity of creation in the Athabasca oilsands is clearly being sacrificed for economic gain," the bishop writes, saying that the current rate of development "cannot be morally justified." In his pastoral letter, Bishop Bouchard says that the problem is attributable to "oil company executives in Calgary and Houston, to government leaders in Edmonton and Ottawa, and to the general public whose excessive consumerist lifestyle drives the demand for oil."

 

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Further information:

• The Integrity of Creation and the Athabasca Oil Sands (Bishop's pastoral/St. Paul diocese)
• Bishop calls for halt on oilsands growth (Calgary Herald)
• Rapid development of Alberta oil sands can't be 'morally justified,' bishop writes (Globe and Mail)