Shell-Shocked
August 14, 2008
Does this oil sands drilling pit look environmentally sustainable to you? In a recent, revolting example of green-washing, Shell oil company tried to claim it was. Fortunately, they were caught and reprimanded. Canada’s World Wildlife Fund took notice of the full page Shell ad, published February 1st, that boasted about new environmental progress made by oil companies, such as the “sustainable oil sands”. The group conducted research and discovered that no data backed up Shell’s claim that the plant was “sustainable”, or even managing carbon emissions effectively! Quite to the contrary, the only data that does exist suggests oil sand development is horrendously detrimental to the environment in terms of water conservation, greenhouse gas emissions, land disturbance and more! Eventually, Canada’s Advertising Standards Authority forced the oil company to stop using the ad. What’s the moral of the story here? Don’t believe everything you read; if it seems to good to be green, it probably is…
