Athabasca Oil Sands Multiple Use Corridor Study: Corridor Selection Process

Resource Type
Authors
Alberta Forestry, Lands and Wildlife, Resource Planning Branch
Resource Date:
1986
Page Length
45

In a region such as the Athabasca Oil Sands, a major consequence of resource development is the need to transport people, materials and energy into and out of the region. While resource development has encouraged the establishment or upgrading of transportation infrastructure such as roads, a railroad and an airport, linear facilities such as pipelines and power transmission lines are also required to serve the various resource activities during the construction and processing phases. To alleviate potential adverse effects placed upon the natural environment from the proliferation of linear facilities, the multiple use corridor concept has been accepted by the Department of Alberta Forestry, Lands and Wildlife, as a feasible remedy to such a situation. This study completes a preliminary step in the development of such a corridor in northeastern Alberta. The corridor proposed in this document will be adjusted and more clearly defined as additional studies, including the department's integrated resource planning process, are undertaken in the region. Furthermore, the process used by the planning team, to select the proposed corridor is described throughout Chapter 2. The study, when initiated, had been referred to as the Lac La Biche-McClelland Lake Multiple Use Corridor Study. However, the revised name Athabasca Oil Sands Multiple Use Corridor Study more accurately depicts the corridors' provincial location and the natural resource that it primarily will serve.