Avatar director accepts invitation to tour oilsands

Canadian film director James Cameron will visit Alberta's oilsands at the end of the month to learn more about the industry and its impact.

The tour was confirmed by George Poitras, a former chief of the Mikisew Cree First Nation.

Poitras said the director of movies such as Avatar and Titanic will be in Fort McMurray on Sept. 27. Cameron will take a helicopter tour of the oilsands to get a sense of the scale of the development. He also wants to meet with First Nations leaders, oil executives and government officials.

The next day, Cameron will travel to Fort Chipewyan to meet with the three chiefs of the area's First Nations and Metis bands, and with the community.

Earlier this year, he called Alberta's oilsands development a "black eye" on Canada's environmental record.