Source: http://intercontinentalcry.org/wp-content/uploads/candian-oil-sands-615.jpg
Canadian artist Neil Young recently spoke out against the Canadian oil sands operation involving the new Keystone XL pipeline, saying companies call Canadian oil “ethical oil because it’s not from Saudi Arabia or some other country…at war with us,” (The Globe and Mail). Young’s involvement raised awareness, exposing unethical business behaviour.
Businesses in the oil industry struggle with ethical consideration for their environmental and public health impacts. To push for the pipeline and maintain public image, I feel that companies are demonstrating ethical consideration for foreign stakeholders, but not for domestic stakeholders. They stress their ethical considerations for exploitation of poor unskilled workers in OPEC countries, but not for stripping habitats into “wastelands” and threatening the public health of our First Nations community. I feel that companies should value these consequences above the benefits of politically stable oil and lower cost of transport.
With the increasing amount of power that firms now have today, an increasing amount of responsibility lies in ethical consideration for those affected by their business. As the cost of oil increases to the point that it’s economically unfeasible, investment into alternative energy sources can be both profitable and ethical, hopefully satisfying all sides of the issue.
You can read the full article here (The Globe and Mail)
“Neil Young on Oil Sands: ‘Fort McMurray Looks like Hiroshima’.” The Globe and Mail. Web. 12 Sep. 2013. <http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/top-business-stories/neil-young-on-oil-sands-fort-mcmurray-looks-like-hiroshima/article14213233/>.