Introduction to Organic Chemistry (START HERE)

Bigger Picture

As a resident of Alberta you have probably seen many pumpjacks. You might have wondered what pumpjacks are doing in the middle of fields. A pumpjack is installed into an oil well (a hole drilled deep into the ground) to mechanically lift an oil and water mixture out of the ground.

Each stroke of the pumpjack can lift between five and 30 litres of the oil and water mixture. Once the mixture is brought to the surface, the process of refining the crude oil can begin.

Crude oil is one type of fossil fuel. The number of pumpjacks you see in fields indicates that Alberta has a lot of crude oil. You may also have seen evidence of other types of fossil fuel resources being developed. For example, you may have seen evidence of coal mining and natural gas wells.

The abundance of fossil fuel resources in Alberta drives Alberta’s economy and is at the core of many industries in Alberta. The recovery and refinement of fossil fuels makes Alberta a wealthy province.

As important as fossil fuels are to Alberta’s economy, there have always been concerns about the impact the development of fossil fuel resources has on the environment. Does the extraction and refinement of fossil fuels cause irreparable damage to the environment?