formula 1
Politician to Vettel protest: culmination of hypocrisy
Provides a topic of conversation: Sebastian Vettel. Photo: Sergei Grits/AP/dpa
© dpa-infocom GmbH
After Sebastian Vettel’s protest about the so-called tar sand mining in Canada, the environment minister of the state concerned publicly defended herself and for her part found clear words for the German Formula 1 driver.
After Sebastian Vettel’s protest about the so-called tar sand mining in Canada, the environment minister of the state concerned publicly defended herself and for her part found clear words for the German Formula 1 driver.
“I’ve seen a lot of hypocrisy over the years, but this is the crowning glory,” wrote Alberta’s Energy Minister Sonya Savage on Twitter in an article with Vettel’s statements before the Canadian Grand Prix.
“A racing driver from Aston Martin, financed by Saudi Aramco, complains about oil sands,” wrote the politicians, alluding to the main sponsor of the racing team. Aramco is considered the largest oil production company in the world, the company comes from Saudi Arabia.
Vettel once said before the season that it was obvious “that the oil companies as a whole have to ask themselves how they want and need to shape the future. I think this can be an opportunity, hopefully to make a little impact to change things a little bit for the better.”
Vettel’s T-shirt is the talk of the town
In Montréal, Vettel followed up his T-shirt campaign – it bore the inscription “Stop tar sand mining – Canada’s climate crime” – in the official press conference before the ninth race of the season. What is happening in Alberta is a crime. “It’s a horror for nature. Something like that shouldn’t be allowed, »emphasized the soon to be 35-year-old four-time world champion.
Instead of demonizing the oil sands, which, according to the politician, are on the way to climate neutrality, people could reduce their own CO2 footprint. “Maybe with pedal cars for Formula 1?” Wrote the politician.
According to Greenpeace, the extraction of oil from the clay and sand mixture differs massively from the conventional extraction of crude oil. The oil sand layer is therefore about 30 meters deep. To get there, Canada’s primeval forests have been cleared and the topsoil removed. Only then can the mixture of sand, clay and tar-like oil be lifted out of the ground.
Vettel is very conscious of his actions as a racing driver. «What I do is not very environmentally conscious and not sustainable. So I’m not a role model in that regard – and I can’t possibly be one, »he once said in an RTL interview. Nevertheless, he is considered to be environmentally conscious. Among other things, he travels to some races in Europe by train, and he comes to the paddock in Melbourne by bike.