Florence Loyie
January 26, 2009

EDMONTON — Earth is a gift from God that must been tended to sustain all life, says a Roman Catholic bishop who urges northern Alberta Catholics to write their MLAs with concerns about the environmental impact of oilsands development.

In a pastoral letter posted to the website of the diocese of St. Paul, Bishop Luc Bouchard says Earth is humanity’s home, given as a gift from God and therefore is to be treasured, loved and safeguarded.

“When we allow creation to be damaged and degraded we risk losing our sense of God’s natural order and even our sense of God’s existence,” the bishop said.

In his opening remarks, Bouchard said his letter was not directed to the “working people of Fort McMurray," but to oil company executives in Calgary and Huston, to government leaders in Edmonton and Ottawa, and to the general public whose excessive consumerist lifestyle drives the demand for oil.”

The St. Paul diocese covers 155,916 square-kilometres, and serves about 55,000 Catholics.

Surface mining of oilsands destroys the boreal forest eco-system, pollutes water, creates greenhouse gases, and toxic tailings ponds which will exist long after the plants have closed, and will require 100 years of supervision and maintenance, Bouchard wrote.

“The present pace and scale of development in the Athabasca oilsands cannot be morally justified. Active steps to allievate this environmental damage must be undertaken,” said Bouchard, who offers suggestions on what should be done to safeguard the environment.

“The moral problem does not lie in government and industry’s lack of a sincere desire to find a solution; the moral problem lies in their racing ahead and aggressively expanding the oilsands industry despite the fact that serious environmental problems remain unresolved,” he said.

He asks diocese members to contact their provincial and federal politicians with their concerns.

“When environment and moral concerns are raised about the oilsands, they are politely received by government and industry, but are considered to be neither economically nor politically realistic,” he said.

However, the bishop said he believes public opinion on environmental issues is rapidly changing, and many in the United States and Canada want government action to protect the environment.

“Government and industry will be forced to recognize that oilsands development should not proceed until the environment ca be adequately protected,” Bouchard said.

floyie@thejournal.canwest.com