Interview with H2Oil director Shannon Walsh

Written by Seema and Alexandra

Sunday, 20 December 2009 19:00

With the meeting at Copenhagen taking place, it is obvious that the environment is a world issue as numerous leaders are trying to find a way to cope with climate change. Closer to home, director Shannon Walsh explores the tar sands issue in her documentary "H2Oil" where she has documented many of the important issues pertaining to this environmental concern. She sat down with us and shared some of her thoughts about the matter.

Orcasound: Tell us about your background?

Shannon: My background includes doing education work and I am a long time student at Concordia. I am an alumni (of Concordia). I did photography, film and my masters here. I went to do my PhD at McGill. I have been making films along the way, but I think this issue really captured me and it ended up being the subject for my first feature documentary.

Orcasound: How did you come up with the idea to make a documentary about the Alberta tar sands?

Shannon: It was kind of a strange way that I came upon it as life sometimes unfolds in funny ways. In the film there is a young couple Aaron and Cathy, who see that their water levels are decreasing around their fresh water spring in Alberta. They are actually friends of mine. Aaron is a saxophone player who did music at Concordia. When he came back to Montreal he talked to his friends who are film makers and told them to come out to Alberta and see what was happening. He was really concerned about the water in Alberta and could not get answers from government or industry. I ended up going with Alan Kohl, another Montrealer who did "Roadsworth", with cameras and we started following them around in their search for answers. As I started doing research, I realized more and more the implications of what the tar sands were about and what threat they posed not only to the water in Alberta but to entire country.

Orcasound:Tell us about the film making process and some of the challenges you encountered.

Shannon: I always joke that it was more difficult making this film than doing my PhD. Since this documentary is science laden, I think a lot of the truth about what is going on gets really hidden in all this scientific and technological language. Even for myself when I first set out to do this film, I had to do a ton of research right up until we premiered it in May 2009 at Hot Docs. To make the film, I started following the community of Fort Chipewyan, which is a northern community about 250 km. downstream from the industry. They are the ones who have been experiencing firsthand the effects of the industry on the land, the water and on their health. The community is suffering from increased rates of cancer and autoimmune diseases. I spent quite a bit of time with them because they were the ones that brought this issue to public attention. So it was the First Nations community of Fort Chipewyan and the Mikisew Cree in that community that said something is going on here and people have to come and pay attention. So their story combined with the research I was doing, helped construct what turned out to be this film.

Orcasound: As far as the industry is concerned, what reaction did you get from them?

Shannon: I think anyone can imagine that doing a film about the oil industry is not the easiest topic to get access to, so I had to use a lot of different tactics. I spent months trying to get interviews with the miners on camera or to get on the sites. We talked with workers and we have so many stories that never made it into the film because for one reason or another, we ended up against a wall of people that didn't want to be filmed on camera. So it was really challenging to keep what the industry was saying in the film given that we were blocked a lot. For example, Heather Kennedy was a really interesting character within the film. She was the VP of Suncor (one of the largest oils sand companies) and actually studied in Montreal herself as an engineer. She got hired on to have a really top position in the Alberta government - she is in charge of approvals for oil sands projects. I thought this was a fascinating representation of the way industry and government were meshed up together and it really tells a lot about the role of industry right now in this country. I hounded and followed her everywhere saying please give me an interview. She had a handler, and there was no way I was going to get an interview; she refused on every account. We found out that she was going to be publicly speaking at this buyers/sellers forum so my producer Sarah Spring posed as a journalist so we could get her on camera speaking publicly. She saw us there and afterward asked her for an interview, which she refused but we were still able to use that bit in the film. So I had to use tactics that maybe traditionally if you had a more welcoming environment, you wouldn't.

Orcasound: What has been the reaction of the Conservative government?

Shannon: The government was almost harder to get access to than the industry and I actually used archival footage from news sources that pre-dated when I was making the film. So I used a collage technique to make sure I had multiple voices from the government. We would be sitting with government representatives with often 4 or 5 people in the room taking notes of everything they were saying so that was really challenging as well. Now that the film is done and starting to circulate a bit around, we're hearing some murmurs from the oil industry. The government is trying to discredit the position that we've taken in the film and I expect to hear more of that. I think the government has a really hard time trying to spin this in the right way. They spent 25 million dollars on a campaign that activist groups and film makers like myself are being able to challenge for a lot less money just stating what is obviously happening up there. I don't think you can spin the oil sands in a positive way.

Orcasound: Do you think Canada is doing enough for the environment compared to other countries?

Shannon: I think Canada is doing nothing. In fact, it's the opposite, we are walking backwards. We've become an energy colony of the United States, we're sending all our resources straight south. We're unable to meet the Kyoto protocols based on the carbon emissions coming out of the tar sands. I think more and more, the Commonwealth countries are looking at Canada and saying we want to kick you out because we can't believe your performance and we're an embarrassment internationally. A recent poll said 75% of Canadians are embarrassed by our government's position. I think we have to be more than just embarrassed but if these are elected representatives, how on earth can they be completely trashing all of Canada's reputation in such a short amount of time. Canada had an internationally powerful reputation of being protective of the environment, but this is more than just about the environment. It's about oil, it's about human lives and the communities. It's not just about forests and trees going down. It's about real people and their way of life. I think we really need to amp the pressure up considerably. I think we need to understand just how serious this matter is for the world and not only for our own country.

Orcasound: Explain to us what the tar sands are and how they have entailed such a controversy.

Shannon: I think it's kind of easy to understand and often in the news they make it sound complicated. The basics are in relation to water and what happens out there. This isn't oil, it's not like you dig down and something gushes up and you're able to capture that. It's a chunky kind of gooey tar that's mixed with sand and clay. The way that they get it out is by one of the most controversial methods and the most environmentally damaging. First, they clear out all of the forest and rivers and then take out this tar like sandy substance from the ground. Then they mix it with fresh water and it has to be very pure water heated by natural gas. After spinning it all together, the clay and silt go to the bottom while an oil like substance, bitumen, rises to the top. What is left from this process is water, which is extremely contaminated, that goes back into these gigantic tailings ponds that you can see from space (some of the largest man made dams on the planet). Once the bitumen is siphoned off, it goes into pipelines to further refine it in order for it to become crude oil. So we see spans of pipelines all across North America that are taking this gooey substance that is refined to crude oil. There are other processes. As well sometimes the industry likes to say well we have other processes that are better, all however are very fresh water intensive and often natural gas intensive. Almost all create extreme amounts of carbon dioxide emissions so steam assisted gravity drainage which industry claims is better is also very water intensive as well.

Orcasound: So in numbers, as you bring up in your film, how many barrels of oil is produced versus fresh water usage?

Shannon: There are many different companies up there, so if you average it out, you are looking at about 4 barrels of fresh water for 1 barrel oil. Part of why H2Oil became the title for this documentary is the idea of the balance of water that we are removing, contaminating and then disposing of. There is a very shortsighted idea of using oil and wasting water.

Orcasound: There is the notion that Canada needs to decrease its dependence on foreign oil. How do we reconcile the notion of the government's project versus a land terrain that virtually has the largest oil reserves in the world?

Shannon: That is what is ironic, the US wants to decrease their dependence on Middle East oil and that's why they are in the tar sands. Canada has no plan for keeping energy resources for ourselves. In the majority of the country we are not even using tar sand oil, look at where the pipelines are going. They are going south and the tanker traffic that is opening up the coast of British Columbia will take oil to China and California for refinement. Pipelines proposed for Montreal are going to take it to Maine and Texas. So that remains a question, it is not really slowing down the demand.

Orcasound: Tell us what people have been saying after watching your documentary and their reaction to it.

Shannon: We have been having an amazing response across the country. We have been touring the country and at festivals we have had packed houses from one side to another. In Vancouver we have a really strong presence there because people are fighting against this tanker traffic. Everywhere we have gone people want to know how to get involved. When we screen our film we usually try to have an action event or workshop where people can plug in what is happening locally and here in Montreal we organized events like that. People need to understand the issue, but it is not enough. We need to participate as citizens of this planet and of this country with making the change that we want to see in the world. Like here in Montreal there are some great groups active on campus (Concordia), Climate Action Justice based out of Concordia is a great group that does things weekly. In Montreal for instance, it's important to see that we have connections with Alberta here as well. There is a pipeline proposed to be reversed that will bring bitumen for refinement to the Eastern Townships which will be pumped as oil to Portland, Maine. It will become a pressure point of activism in the city. For instance, Dunham, a town in the community says we do not want this and they have elected a mayor based on that he says no to the project along with 2 councillors. We are also forming alliances with the community locally as well. I think if we want to stop tar sands we have to find out where does it stop here locally and here in Montreal there are some pretty clear targets and it is something that students can definitely get involved in that can help us move forward.

Orcasound: It is is a huge undertaking as far as mobilizing Canada's resources so how do we come to terms with that? It seems that environmentalists are touted as stopping progress when in fact they are augmenting it by bringing attention to issues that can be improved upon.

Shannon: I think there is a false dichotomy, what Harper likes to say is that it's either the economy or the environment. I feel like the younger generation understands that's not how it goes. What kind of economy do you have if you don't have an environment? We can't be so short sighted as to where we are going, there is not a limit, it's about rethinking creatively how we are going to live on this planet collectively. I think a lot of us, including myself, do not have a lot of time to think about what is going to happen next. This idea of progress, we have to question what that means. Imagine you go to a house party but you end up destroying the house. Rather than that would it not be better to tend to the garden and keep the house in good condition so that we can continue to enjoy and share those things together? I think it is pretty obvious a 6-year-old kid knows it, but the greed that propels us also stops us from taking the time to think about what our basic values are. I feel that this generation is ready to do that and answer those questions that are going to be the questions of our time. I feel that this is the moment.

Orcasound: So you're pretty hopeful for the future?

Shannon: The only difference I see right now is people that do something versus people that do not. I don't know that I am optimistic, but I am not ready to give up. That means that I am willing to fight and once we see the threshold of how we are willing to act and at what point are we going to do it. We have to answer the question ourselves. I think that the world is a good place and there are a lot of things here to enjoy. For that I am optimistic that a lot of people will use their energy towards something great.

Orcasound: So what would your message be?

Shannon: I think what is important right now is not to focus how daunting these big projects are and not to get depressed or anxious. It is better to get involved and to keep working with other people that are thinking about solutions and being together with that. That is a very important step. It might seem really simple, you might think it is not getting to an answer, but it is the beginning of answering that question. So get involved, find out what groups are doing, go to some meetings. That is how we can start to construct a future together.

Orcasound: What is next in line and what projects are you planning for the future?

Shannon: I am going to continue touring with the film and try to work toward people seeing the issue. I will definitely continue to be active in this issue, which is a defining one for Canada. I will continue to make films and have new films in my pocket for the coming years. Check out my website also: www.H2Oildoc.com
which has resources concerning where to get involved, where the film is going, where we are going, and you can keep track of the movements that are inspired by this anti tar sands campaign.