The Keystone XL Pipeline Expansion: Not going as smoothly as Keith Stone

In my last post, I discussed the struggle of deciding whether or not expansion of the Alberta Oil Sands (economic benefits v. environmental impacts) is a good idea or not. For that reason, I will not go into too much detail in this post about that topic. I will, instead, discuss a major issue in regards to that topic on this side of the border. The major argument about Canadian oil here America is in regards to the construction of the Keystone Pipeline XL expansion.

What is the Keystone Pipeline?

The Keystone Pipeline has been operating for around two years now and has moved countless barrels of crude oil from Alberta, Canada to refineries in the United States, most predominantly of which are in Illinois and Oklahoma. Even before the original pipeline was finished, propositions for expansion had already begun. This would add pipeline and more refineries in Montana and Texas. Though many different government organizations approved the project, the EPA and other environmental groups said that there needed to be more research done on the environmental impacts before construction could begin. From there, like with anything else in American politics, polarization began.

And so it begins…..

In late 2011, the Republicans in Congress began to demand that President Obama have a decision on the pipeline in 60 days. Almost entirely for that reason, he rejected the proposition. In an Fox Business Article written in January of 2012, they mention that part of Obama’s statement read “The rushed and arbitrary deadline insisted on by Congressional Republicans prevented a full assessment of the pipeline’s impact, especially the health and safety of the American people, as well as our environment." As the argument over the pipeline continued, so did the attacks on the President for his decision. In a May 2012Fox New Article, journalist Grover Norquist pushes for Congress to bypass the President and approve the pipeline saying that Obama rejected to proposition to “Attempting to appease his insatiable base during this election cycle” while the Republicans in Congress are simply “Eager to approve the pipeline and enjoy the thousands of jobs, millions of barrels of crude oil, and billions in economic activity that are tethered to the project.” Clearly, he has a pretty strong opinion on the matter.

So what do we do?

In the last few months, Obama has “embraced the southern leg of the project,” to get oil to the Gulf, but it seems the controversy about the Keystone XL will continue for some time. Personally, I can see both sides of this argument. Times are still tough, and this pipeline will create jobs and help America feed some of their appetite for oil. But the reality is that we need to understand the environmental impacts of what we do before we undertake a project of this magnitude. While I understand that thorough investigation may take longer than some people would like, and theres always the fear of political bias when such things are done, we have to do something before we build anything this massive, let alone a pipeline for oil.