Don't quite know where else to put this, but this is a significant discovery:
Ala. Oil Sands Hold Lucrative Promise, Environmental PerilMary Sell, TimesDaily Published: Aug 11, 2013, 8:22 AM EDTMONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — A financial boon could be awaiting Alabama just below the earth's surface in parts of north and west Alabama.
That's what some consider to be the potential of oil sands — or tar sands as they also are called — that geologists said are called in some areas, including Colbert, Franklin and Lawrence counties.
According to some estimates, the oil sands hold 7.5 billion barrels of crude oil and a revenue source for the state that has remained untapped to this point.
Environmental groups call it unnecessary and potentially disastrous.
Late last month, Gov. Robert Bentley and Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant signed a memorandum of understanding, commissioning an assessment of the oil sands that contain bitumen, which can be transformed into usable oil. Bitumen is a black, oily viscous material that is an organic byproduct of decomposed organic materials.
The study will be the first of the oil sands resources since the 1980s, state geologist Nick Tew said.
The study reportedly will lead to better reserve estimates and models, "and other information critical to stimulate private sector interest and guide prudent development," he said.