U.S. reverses course, greenlights Keystone Pipeline
President Donald Trump has formally approved the controversial Keystone XL pipeline extension, reversing a previous decision by former President Barack Obama to reject the 1,179-mile pipeline over environmental concerns.
The action fulfills a key campaign promise of President Trump, who pledged to build the pipeline. The $8 billion project, which is being developed by TransCanada, would connect tar sand fields in Hardisty, Alberta to Steele City, Nebraska, where it will connect with the existing Keystone network that feeds refineries across the U.S.
The U.S. State Department requires a presidential permit for any pipelines that cross the U.S. border. The permit grants permission to construct, connect, operate, and maintain the pipeline facilities at the international border. Trump announced the permit during an Oval Office briefing on Friday, which included TransCanada CEO Russ Girling.
“It’s a great day for American jobs and a historic moment for North America and energy independence,” Trump said. “Keystone will reduce costs and reliance on foreign oil while creating thousands of jobs, It’s going to be an incredible pipeline.”
Despite Trump’s presidential permit, the Keystone XL pipeline still has a long way to go before oil can start flowing south across the U.S.-Canada border. The pipeline still needs to be approved by various regulatory agencies in the U.S. and Canada, including state agencies which Trump has no authority over.
As he announced the permit, Trump asked Mr. Girling when work will begin on the pipeline. Girling responded that the company still needs to get approval in Nebraska. The President also offered to call Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts to speed up routing approvals there.
“I’m sure Nebraska will be good,” Trump said. “Pete is a great governor, he’s done a fantastic job. I’ll call him today.”
Gov. Ricketts said later on Saturday that the granting of a permit a “great, positive step forward.”
“Obviously we have a process to work through here in the state with the Public Service Commission,” he said. “I’m confident they’ll go through their process and make their determination with regard to this being (in the) public interest.”
In addition to state regulatory approvals, the pipeline would still face additional regulatory hurdles, including compliance with local zoning restrictions, construction permits, and right-of-way permits. In addition, TransCanada will need to reach deals with local landowners who are affected.
Each of these regulatory decisions will be the basis for numerous legal challenges, and a number of groups have already announced their intent to raise objections to any decision granting permission to construct the pipeline.
“This project is going to be fought at every turn,” said Bill McKibben, a co-founder of the climate activism group 350.org and one of the first organizers of anti-Keystone protests, to the Atlantic. “There’s nothing static about this project. In the six or seven years since we started fighting it, the price of a solar panel has fallen 75 percent.”
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