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At this moment, four Greenpeace activists are suspended 42 metres over the North Saskatchewan River in Edmonton. They have dropped two banners to send a very clear message to Alberta legislators and the nation: "Stop the Tar Sands." The banners are in full view of the Alberta legislature, which opened today. We need you to hammer home the same message.  
 
The tar sands are one of the most dangerous and dirty sources of energy on the planet. The destructive impact of extracting oil from the tar sands is being felt across the province. The people of Alberta are already suffering from environmental and social problems caused by the tar sands. Old growth forests are ripped from the ground and discarded to make way for giant earthmovers to dig up the landscape, an important habitat to wildlife. If all of the proposed leases for tar sands development are granted, the tar sands will encompass an area the size of Florida.  
 
The tar sands are the single largest source of increases in greenhouse gas emissions in Canada, and one of the main reasons we are not meeting our international obligations under the Kyoto treaty to reduce emissions. By 2020, they will produce double the greenhouse gas emissions of all the cars and trucks currently in Canada.  
 
It is totally irresponsible for the Alberta government to push for more development in the face of the dire consequences of global warming. If politicians were really concerned about the health of their constituents and the environment, they would be weaning the province off oil and developing clean, renewable energy such as solar, geothermal, and wind power. The solutions exist: what is lacking is the political will.  
 
But this is not a matter of concern just for the people of Alberta. The tonnes of greenhouse gases emitted during the production of tar sands oil do not stay in the province, but are flushed into the atmosphere shared by all living creatures. The tar sands are an environmental crime being perpetrated against the entire planet.  
 
Please do what you can to stop it.  
 
Take Action  
If you live in Alberta, send a letter to the Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach asking him to shut down the tar sands and stop polluting the atmosphere:  
 
a.. Stop the Tar Sands, Mr. Stelmach!  
If you live in other parts of Canada, write to Prime Minister Harper demanding that he end all access to the accelerated capital cost allowance tax break to any tar sands projects immediately, and ensure that hard emissions reductions targets are enforced in the industry:  
 
a.. Stop the Tar Sands Mr. Harper!  
Find out more at www.greenpeace.ca/tarsands  
 
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Greenpeace Canada - 250 Dundas West, Suite 605, Toronto (Ontario) M5T 2Z5  
(416) 597-8408 or 1-800-320-7183