The Athabasca oil sands are a large deposit of bitumen located in northeastern Alberta, Canada. This area contains one of the world's largest reserves of crude oil, primarily found in a mixture of sand, clay, and water. The extraction process involves mining or in-situ methods to separate the bitumen from the sand. The oil sands cover approximately 142,000 square kilometers and are a significant source of energy for Canada. The development of the Athabasca oil sands has raised environmental concerns, particularly regarding land use, water consumption, and greenhouse gas emissions associated with extraction and processing.