Bitumen is seeing a renewed use as a exterior waterproofing sealant and while there are some practical uses it is generally very job specific.

Bitumen is mined from tar sand. The most well known being the Tar Sand pit in Alberta Canada. The area is larger than England and is a source of great environmental controversy.

• Bitumen is too thick to be pipelined and must be shipped. Because of this it must be diluted using, among others the following: natural gas, naphtha,synthetic crude and benzene.
• One ton of tar sand produces merely 104 pounds of oil. The rest is discarded waste.
• It requires 40+ gallons of water to produce a gallon of Bitumen.
• Benzene is a well known carcinogen and local autoimmune disease and cancer increase exponentially in its presence.
• Bitumen is actually many times more corrosive than standard oil. It has proven to corrode metal pipelines. Applying this material to foundation walls greatly shortens their lifespan and strength.
• The Bitumen manufacturing process is considered to be the most wasteful and environmentally irresponsible practice the oil industry has enforced to date.