“In order to allow time for certainty regarding the Nebraska route, TransCanada requests that the State Department pause in its review of the presidential permit application”, the letter said. The pipeline would run 1,179 miles from the Canadian oil sands in Alberta to refineries in Texas. Until recently, it would have been unimaginable for the Calgary, Alberta-based company to ask for a delay.
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Most pro-Keystone advocates have largely resigned themselves to a rejection from the White House, given Obama’s past statements casting skepticism that the project would create enough jobs to outweigh the potential environmental risks. The company said that the pause should go into effect while it continues to work with the Nebraska Public Service Commission on determining its preferred route for the pipeline, which would stretch through the state. It’s likely to extend the decision beyond Obama’s presidency.
But now the Obama’s administration, after seven years of delay, seems to have found new sense of urgency when faced with the prospect of letting the next United States president decide on the fate of the $8 billion (7.36 billion euro) oil pipeline. “We will issue a response, but we’re going to continue our review process”.
Under that timeline, rejecting the proposed TransCanada Corp. pipeline could send an important signal to world leaders about the US commitment to combating climate change, possibly emboldening negotiators and driving a stronger deal.
“I was surprised that the State Department announced just two days after TransCanada made the request”, Kleeb tells Nebraska Radio Network.
All the Democratic presidential hopefuls, including front-runner Hillary Clinton, oppose the project, while most of the Republican presidential candidates support it.
The company said it will submit its changes to the National Energy Board, and that the pipeline should be up and running by 2020.
Opposition to the project has ignited a grassroots movement of climate activists who say the project would require huge amounts of energy and water and increase emissions of global warming pollutants.
He pointed to the fact that five reports and thousands of pages reviewed by the State Department during the application process have pointed to favorable economic news for the US if the pipeline is approved. They warn pipeline leaks could potentially pollute underground aquifers that are a critical source of water for farmers in the Great Plains.
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Canada needs infrastructure in place to export its growing oil sands production. The USA review has split lawmakers and hurt relations with Canada, which is seeking to expand markets for its crude.
