Syncrude’s Aurora North tar pond. This was the epicentre of a public relations disaster for Syncrude & the Alberta Government when an anonymous source reported the poisoning & subsequent drowning of 500 ducks which landed on the surface of this pond in March 2008. This incident occurred just as Ron Stevens, Alberta's deputy premier, was in Washington to let U.S. legislators know the province represents an "environmentally responsible source of energy supply to the United States".
In response Alberta's environment Minister Rob Renner said: "It's a real blow to our messaging that we are working very, very hard [to] ensure that we do have sustainable development."
Syncrude President and CEO Tom Katinas said, 'We take a lot of pride in having systems in place to prevent birds from landing on settling basins and storage ponds.” “So we're very saddened and sorry that this occurred.” He also said it was the first time a large flock of birds landed on a settling basin in Syncrude's 30 years of operation.
