Oilsands area largely intact, but impacts are growing, says new report

EDMONTON – A report by an environmental monitoring agency has found the variety of plants and animals in the oilsands area is largely healthy.

But the Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute, funded by industry and government, has found that animals that prefer old-growth forests, such as marten, are deserting the region in favour of those such as coyotes, which are found everywhere.

The institute found that the oilsands area is still about 94 per cent intact when it comes to what’s living there.

It says less than seven per cent of the region shows visible impact from development.

Those figures, however, are three years old.

As well, they don’t consider that the current level of development is about one-fifth what’s planned for the oilsands.