Alberta's Prime Minister is responding to Al Gore's attack on tar sands development in a forthcoming ssue of Rolling Stone. From the Calgary Sun:

Former U.S. vice—president Al Gore is full of hot air for comparing oilsands backers to junkies seeking their next fix, charges Premier Ralph Klein.

"The United States needs our oil. I don't know what he proposes the world run on, maybe hot air?" Klein snapped.

In an interview in the July 13—27 issue of Rolling Stone magazine, Gore bashes oilsands development, and says the reliance on fossil fuels is "dysfunctional."

"Take the tar sands of Western Canada. For every barrel of oil they extract there, they have to use enough natural gas to heat a family's home for four days," Gore said.

"And they have to tear up four tons of landscape, all for one barrel of oil. It is truly nuts.

"But you know, junkies find veins in their toes. It seems reasonable, to them, because they've lost sight of the rest of their lives."