Senator Joan Fraser:

The water use is possibly a more serious concern but the oil companies are not foolish and they have been working very hard to reduce the amount of energy and water used to produce the oil. They have made great strides in recycling the water they use. Most sand oil extraction is done in the province of Alberta, which tends not to have a great deal of water. It is not Saudi Arabia, but it does not have an abundance of water like eastern Canada. In Alberta, they must be careful with their water and the oil companies are working very hard to minimise their net end consumption.