It is often noted by individuals who support continued fossil fuel use and development that alternative fuels simply are not cost effective. What is often ignored in that argument is the high level of subsidy which the taxpayer incurs in order to keep those prices down. What we pay at the pump, we think, is what we're paying for gas. This isn't correct. One of the most significant sources of government subsidy is in paying for the cleanup of environmental degradation. This fact is being brought into the nationwide debate over oil sands development in Canada.
Oil companies in the tar sands regions of Canada have left a massive tax liability at the foot of the Canadian tax payer. As it stands now, more than 10 billion in unfunded cleanup liabilities exist as the oil companies active in the tar sands region have intentionally ignored the funding requirements imposed on them. This money was supposed to be set aside in case they companies would need it for cleanup and restorations operations, but as it stands today, that money isn't there. This leaves the tax payer on the hook. At currents rates, the liability could total upwards of 6000 dollars for each tax paying citizen of Alberta.
While this is not the least bit surprising, as it seems the modus operandi of the oil industry to create externalities and pass their cost onto the tax payers, it should deeply bother any Canadian or environmentally conscious person to know that the largest corporations on Earth, and some of the most environmentally destructive, are disregarding their environmental responsibility while they take in record profits. It is necessary that environmentally exploitative companies be required to cover all of the costs associated with their actions, otherwise consumers will never be fully aware of the real cost of the products which they purchase.
National Geographic: Photo's from the Oil Sands
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