"Liquid Truth" - synopsis continued

These are the generally accepted facts:

• The overall river level is dropping.
• Climate change will affect the runoffs to the Athabasca River.
• The pace of industrial development in northeastern Alberta is increasing – more than $75 billion is currently earmarked for new oilsands operations.
• Surface mining will degrade extensive watershed areas north of Fort McMurray.

In contention:

• Can the Athabasca River flows handle a five-fold expansion of industrial activity in the region?
• Is off-river storage or the damming of the Athabasca a reasonable answer to the problem of low flows?
• Can the structural integrity of the massive tailings ponds be maintained for the foreseeable future?
• Will these ponds and surface mines be reclaimed in the future?
• Is the health of people being seriously compromised in communities downstream of Fort McMurray ?

A key finding: truth on this river is like the water in it - shapeless. There are multiple perspectives about the river that are not easily reconciled, in particular the balance between economic and political realities and environmental impacts. In the words of one participant, “all of these truths could be simultaneously valid”.

Contact Alan Bibby, Producer/Director