Syncrude could have done more to protect ducks. So begins the first day in the Syncrude trial, which is scheduled to last up to two months.
Already Syncrude through its attorney Robert White has attempted to remove the judge claiming a conflict of interest as Provincial Court Judge Ken Tjosvold was a senior manager in the Crown Prosecutors office some 20 years ago.
As pointed out in an earlier blog post this decision to fight these charges can be seen as one of the most disastrous and damaging PR efforts the Heavy Oil industry has yet attempted. Where is the win here?
World media attention was drawn to this debacle nearly two years ago, and have remained fixed since. In the ensuing time we have had massive media coverage of the Oil Sands industry, viewed through the filter of the Copenhagen conference. World leaders,provincial Premiers and state Governors have all been critical of the industry as a whole. This vain attempt to portray the poor little oil and gas company as the victim of the big bad government only adds to the already overwhelmingly negative perception of all companies involved in the Heavy Oil industry.
There is nothing but enmity to be gained here. Enmity from two independent governments which have lobbied furiously to promote this industry worldwide. Enmity from consumers whose tax dollars were used to contribute massive amounts of capital, tax incentives and infrastructure building to support the Oil Sands development and expansion. Finally, Enmity from members and Oil Sands executives within the industry as Syncrude continues to very publicly Tar the Oil Sands with a dirty brush.
Syncrude needs new leadership to steer itself and the industry through troubled waters of its own making.
Admin.