Keystone Pipeline System is an oil pipeline system in Canada and the United States, commissioned in 2010 and now wholly owned by TransCanada Corporation. It runs from the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin in Alberta to refineries in Illinois and Texas, as well as to an oil tank farm and oil pipeline distribution center in Cushing, Oklahoma. The pipeline is of greater concern when the planned fourth phase, Keystone XL, attracts growing environmental protests, a symbol of a battle over climate change and fossil fuels, and in 2015 while delayed by President Barack Obama. On January 24, 2017, President Donald Trump took action intended to allow the completion of the pipeline.
Three phase projects are in operation. They:
- The Keystone Pipeline (Phase I), sends oil from Hardisty, Alberta, over 3,456 kilometers (2,147Ã, mi) to the intersection in Steele City, Nebraska, and to the Wood River Refinery in Roxana, Illinois; Patoka Oil Terminal Hub (agricultural tank) to the north of Patoka, Illinois, completed in June 2010.
- Keystone-Cushing extension (Stage II), runs 468 kilometers (291Ã, mi) from Steele City to a tank farm in Cushing, Oklahoma, completed in February 2011.
- The Gulf Coast Extension, runs 784 kilometers (487Ã, mi) from Cushing to a refinery in Port Arthur, Texas is completed in January 2014, and lateral pipes for refineries in Houston, Texas and terminals will be completed by mid-2016, will be online the following year.
The proposed Keystone XL (sometimes abbreviated as KXL, with XL standing for "limited export") Pipeline (Phase IV) will basically duplicate (though along shorter routes and with larger diameter pipes) phase I pipeline between Hardisty, Alberta , and Steele City, Nebraska. It will run through Baker, Montana, where lightly produced American crude from Williston Basin (Bakken formation) from Montana and North Dakota will be added to Keystone throughput from syncrude oil (syncrude) and bitumen diluted from Canadian oil sand. After more than six years of review, President Barack Obama announced on 6 November 2015, his government's rejection of the fourth phase. On January 24, 2017, President Trump signed a presidential memorandum to revive the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines. This Memorandum is designed to expedite the environmental review process.
The first two phases have the capacity to deliver up to 590,000 barrels per day (94,000 m 3 /d) oil to Midwest refineries. Phase III has the capacity to deliver up to 700,000 barrels per day (110,000 m 3 /d) to Texas refineries. By comparison, US oil production averaged 9.400,000 barrels per day (1,490,000 m 3 /d) in the first half of 2015, with gross exports of 500,000 barrels per day (79,000 m < > 3 /d) through July 2015.
Video Keystone Pipeline
Description
The Keystone Pipeline System consists of Phase I operations, Phase II, and Phase III, the Gulf Coast Pipeline Project. Fourth, the proposed Phase IV pipeline expansion segment, Keystone XL, failed to receive the necessary permits from the federal government of the United States in 2015. Phase III Construction, from Cushing, Oklahoma, to Nederland, Texas, in the Gulf Coast region, 2012 as an independent economic utility. Phase III opened on January 22, 2014 The Keystone XL Pipeline Project (Phase IV) revision project in 2012 comprises a 36 inch (910 mm) new pipe from Hardisty, Alberta, via Montana and South Dakota to Steele City, Nebraska, to "transportation up to 830,000 barrels per day (132,000 m 3 /d) of crude oil from the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin in Alberta, Canada, and from the Williston Basin (Bakken) region in Montana and North Dakota, primarily for refineries in Gulf Coast. "The Keystone XL pipeline segment is intended to allow US crude into the XL pipeline in Baker, Montana, on their way to storage and distribution facilities in Cushing, Oklahoma. Cushing is the center for marketing/refining and main crude oil pipelines.
Operating since 2010, the original Keystone Pipeline System is a 3,461 kilometers (2,151 mi) pipeline that sends Canadian crude into the US Midwest and Cushing, Oklahoma markets. In Canada, the first phase of Keystone involves the conversion of approximately 864 kilometers (537 mi) of the 36-inch (910 mm) natural gas pipeline in Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the crude oil pipeline service. It also includes about 373 kilometers (232Ã, mi) of new 30-inch (760 mm) diameter pipes, 16 pumping stations and the Keystone Hardisty Terminal.
The US portion of the Keystone Pipeline includes 1,744 kilometers (1,084Ã, mi) new, 30-inch (760 mm) diameter pipelines in North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri and Illinois. The pipe has a minimum ground cover of 4 feet (1.2 m). It also involves the construction of 23 pumping stations and shipping facilities in Wood River and Patoka, Illinois. In 2011, Keystone's second phase included 480 kilometers (298Ã, mi) extensions from Steele City, Nebraska, to Cushing, Oklahoma, and 11 new pumping stations to increase pipeline capacity from 435,000 to 591,000 barrels per day (69,200 to 94,000 m < > 3 /d).
The additional phase (III, completed in 2014 and IV, rejected in 2015) has been under construction or discussion since 2011. If completed, Keystone XL will add 510,000 barrels per day (81,000 m 3 /d ) increased total capacity by up to 1.1 million barrels per day (170 ÃÆ'â € 10 3 m 3 /d).
The original Keystone Pipeline cost US $ 5.2 billion with the expansion of Keystone XL costing approximately US $ 7 billion. Keystone XL has been expected to be completed by 2012-2013, but construction is finally taken over by events.
Ownership
Although the project was originally developed as a partnership between TransCanada Corporation and ConocoPhillips, TransCanada is now the sole owner of the Keystone Pipeline System, as TransCanada received regulatory approval on August 12, 2009 to purchase ConocoPhillips interest.
Certain parties who have agreed to make volume commitments for the Keystone expansion have the option to acquire up to 15% of the combined shareholding. One such company is Valero Energy Corporation.
Maps Keystone Pipeline
Route
Phase 1 (finished)
The 3,456 kilometer (2,147Ã, mi) pipeline runs from Hardisty, Alberta, to the intersection of Steele City, Nebraska, and to the Wood River Refinery in Roxana, Illinois, and Patoka Oil Terminal Hub (north of Patoka) Illinois. The Canadian section involves approximately 864 kilometers (537 mi) of pipes converted from Mainline Canada natural gas pipeline and 373 kilometers (232 mi) of new pipes, pumping stations and terminal facilities in Hardisty, Alberta.
The United States section is 2,219 kilometers (1,379 miles) long. It runs through Buchanan, Clinton, Caldwell, Montgomery, Lincoln and St.. Charles County in Missouri, and Nemaha, Brown and Doniphan County in Kansas before entering Madison County, Illinois. Phase 1 started online in June 2010.
Phase 2 (done)
The Keystone-Cushing pipeline phase connects the Keystone pipeline (phase 1) in Steele City, Nebraska, south through Kansas to the oil hub and agricultural tank in Cushing, Oklahoma, 468 kilometers long (291 mi). It was built in 2010 and started online in February 2011.
Phase 3a (done)
The Cushing MarketLink pipe phase begins at Cushing, Oklahoma, where American-produced oil is added to the pipeline, then travels south 435 miles (700 km) to the delivery point near the terminal in the Netherlands, Texas, to serve the refinery in the Port Arthur area of ​​Texas. Keystone began pumping oil through this section in January 2014. Oil producers in the US are pushing for this phase so that glut oil can be distributed out of large oil tank farms and distribution centers in Cushing.
Phase 3b (done)
The pipe phase Houston Lateral is a 47 miles (76 km) long pipeline for transporting crude oil from pipes in Liberty County, Texas, to refineries and terminals in the Houston area. This phase was built 2013 to 2016 and started online in 2017.
Phase 4
The proposed Keystone XL Pipeline starts from the same area in Alberta, Canada, as a Phase 1 pipeline. The Canadian section will consist of 526 kilometers (327Ã, mi) of new pipes. It will enter the United States in Morgan, Montana, and travel through Baker, Montana, where American-produced oil will be added to the pipeline; will then travel through South Dakota and Nebraska, where he will join the Keystone pipeline in Steele City, Nebraska. This phase has generated the greatest controversy because of its routing over the Sandhills in Nebraska.
On November 6, 2015, the Keystone XL project was rejected by the Obama administration after more than six years of preliminary review and approval by the Obama State Department. Leading to this, financial commitment to pipeline settlement is weakened by a number of technological factors as well. The latest innovation in fracking has boosted domestic oil production and, according to the EIA, reduced annual oil demand from foreign countries to an all-time low since 1985. Shifting to gasoline for cargo vehicles, new technologies that promote fuel efficiency, and export restrictions that force oil prices down also play a role.
After Obama's decision, the aides of President Trump Donald reportedly searched for the easiest way to reciprocate.
On January 18, 2018, TransCanada announced that it has been committed to deliver 500,000 barrels per day for 20 years. They believe construction could begin in 2019.
History
Initial stage
TransCanada Corporation proposed the project on February 9, 2005. In October 2007, the Canadian Communications, Energy and Paper Society asked the Canadian federal government to block regulatory approval for the pipeline, with union president Dave Coles stating "the Keystone pipeline will exclusively serving the US Market, creating permanent jobs for very few Canadians, reducing our energy security, and hampering investment and job creation in the Canadian energy sector. "
The Canadian National Energy Council approved the construction of Canadian parts of the pipeline, including converting part of Canada's Mainline TransCanada gas pipeline to the crude oil pipeline, on September 21, 2007. On March 17, 2008, the US State Department issued a Presidential License authorizing the construction, maintenance and operation of facilities on the border of the United States and Canada.
On January 22, 2008, ConocoPhillips acquired a 50% stake in the project. On June 17, 2009, TransCanada agreed that they would purchase ConocoPhillips shares in the project and return to become the sole owner. TransCanada takes more than two years to get all the necessary state and federal permits for the pipeline. Development takes two years. The pipeline, from Hardisty, Alberta, Canada, to Patoka, Illinois, USA, began operations in June 2010.
On 3rd of June 2011, PHMSA issued TransCanada, Corrective Action Order (CAO), for Keystone Leak May 2011. On April 9, 2016, PHMSA issued CAO to TransCanada, for a leak of 16,800 gallons in Hutchinson County, South Dakota, on April 2nd. The pipeline resumed under reduced operating pressure on April 10 after US regulators approved the company's corrective actions and plans. A leak of 9,700 barrels (407,400 gallons) occurred in Marshall County, South Dakota in November 2017. This leak occurred early on November 16, 2017 near Amherst, South Dakota and constrained shortly after the detection of 35 miles south of the Ludden pump station.
Keystone XL
The Keystone XL extension was proposed in 2008. The application was submitted in September 2008 and the National Energy Board of Canada initiated the hearing in September 2009. On March 11, 2010, the Canadian National Energy Board approved the project. The South Dakota Public Utilities Commission granted permission to continue on 19 February 2010.
On July 21, 2010, the Environmental Protection Agency said the environmental impact study design for Keystone XL was inadequate and should be revised, indicating that the State Department's original report was "too narrow" because it did not fully see the oil spill response plan, security issues and greenhouse gas issues. The final environmental impact report was released on August 26, 2011. It states that pipelines will generate "no significant impact" on most resources if environmental protection measures are followed, but will present "significant adverse effects on certain cultural resources". In September 2011, Cornell's ILR Global Labor Institute released the results of the GLI Keystone XL Report, which evaluated the impact of the pipeline on work, environment, energy independence, economics and other key areas.
On November 10, 2011, the State Department delayed its final decision due to the need "to seek additional information on potential alternative routes around the Sandhills in Nebraska to inform the determination of whether issuing permits for the proposed Keystone XL pipeline was at national interest". In response, TransCanada showed fourteen different routes for Keystone XL being studied, eight of which had an impact on Nebraska. They include a potential alternative route in Nebraska that will avoid the entire Sandhills and Ogallala Aquifer regions and six alternatives that will reduce the mileage of the pipeline across the Sandhills or aquifers. On November 22, 2011, the Nebraska unicameral legislature endorsed two bills with the governor's signature which imposed an agreed compromise with the pipeline builder to move the route, and approved up to US $ 2 million in state funding for environmental studies.
On November 30, 2011, a group of Republican senators introduced a law aimed at forcing the Obama administration to make a decision within 60 days. In December 2011, the Congress passed a law granting Obama Administration a 60-day deadline to make decisions about applying to build the Keystone XL Pipeline.
In January 2012, Obama rejected an application stating that the deadline for the decision had "prevented a full assessment of the impact of the pipeline". On September 5, 2012, TransCanada submitted an environmental report on a new route in Nebraska, which, according to the company "based on extensive feedback from Nebraskas, and reflects our shared desire to minimize disruption of land and sensitive resources in the country". In March 2012, Obama supported the development of the southern segment (Gulf Coast Extension or Phase III) that began in Cushing, Oklahoma. The president said in Cushing, Oklahoma, on March 22, "Today, I am directing my administration to cut the bureaucracy, break through the bureaucratic hurdles, and make this project a priority, to go ahead and resolve it."
On September 27, 2012, protesters began planting trees on the Keystone pipeline near Winnsboro, Texas. Eight people stood on a tree platform right in front of where the crew cut down trees to pave the way for the pipeline.
On October 4, 2012, actress and activist Daryl Hannah and 78-year-old Texan owner Eleanor Fairchild were arrested for criminal offenses and other allegations after they were accused of standing in front of TransCanada's pipeline construction equipment on Fairchild farm in Winnsboro, a town about 100 miles east of Dallas. Ms. Fairchild has owned the land since 1983 and refused to sign an agreement with TransCanada. The land is captured by a leading domain.
In an additional environmental impact statement (SEIS) released in March 2013, the US Department of State's International Bureau of Marine and Environmental Affairs and Scientific Affairs outlines changes to the original proposal including shortening the pipeline to 875 miles (1,408 km); its avoidance from "crossing the NDEQ-identified Sandhills Area" and "reduction of pipeline length across the Highland Plateau system, which includes the establishment of Ogallala"; and stated "there will be no significant impact on most resources along the proposed Project route." Responding to a Freedom of Information Act request for route information, the State Department revealed on June 24, 2013, that "Neither Cardno ENTRIX nor TransCanada ever submitted GIS information to the Department of Foreign Affairs, nor required the company to do so." In response to the State Department report , who does not advocate acceptance or rejection, an editor of The New York Times recommended that Obama should reject the project, which "even the most careful State Department calculations - can only add to the problem [climate change]. "On March 21, Mother Jones revealed that the key personnel employed by Environment Resources Management (ERM), the consulting firm responsible for generating most of SEIS, had previously done contract work for the TransCanada company. In addition, When the Ministry of Foreign Affairs released the original ERM proposal has been submitted to secure the SEIS contract, part of the history of the key personnel work is edited.
In April 2013, the EPA challenged the US Department of State's conclusion that the pipeline would not produce greater oil-sands production, noting that "informative, temporarily, it is not based on renewed energy-economy modeling". Overall, the EPA ranked SEIS with their category "EO-2" (EO for "environmental objection" and 2 for "insufficient information").
In May 2013, Republicans in the House of Representatives defended the Northern Route Approval Act, which would allow congressional approval of the pipeline, arguing that the pipeline creates jobs and energy independence. If the enactment of the North Route Approval Act will override the terms for permission to foreign companies and ignore the need for President Obama's approval, and the debate in the Democratic-controlled US Senate, concerned about serious environmental risks, could lead to channel pipe rejection.
On January 22, 2014, the Gulf Coast Extension (Phase III) opened.
On January 9, 2015, the US House voted 266-153 for a pipeline. On the same day, the Nebraska Supreme Court cleared the way for development, after Republican Gov. Dave Heineman has approved it in 2013.
A bill approving the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline was approved by the Senate (62-36) on 29 January 2015, and by the House of Representatives (270-152) on 11 February 2015. President Obama vetoed the bill on February 24, 2015, should be in the Executive Branch. The Senate can not rule out a veto with a two-thirds majority, with a 62-37 vote.
TransCanada sued the Nebraska landowners who refused permission to allow pipeline facilities on their property, to use the leading domain for such use. However, on September 29, 2015, he dropped his lawsuit and accessed the authority of the Nebraska Public Service Commission five elected members, who have state constitutional authority to approve gas and oil pipelines.
On November 3, 2015, Foreign Minister John Kerry issued a determination that the project was not for the public good. Kerry found that there was a "perception" among foreigners that the project would increase greenhouse gas emissions, and that, whether this perception was accurate or not, the decision would "undermine the credibility and influence of the United States" in climate-related negotiations of change. On November 6, 2015, the Obama administration rejected the pipeline. Early in his tenure, President Donald Trump signed a presidential memorandum to revive the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines. The order will speed up an environmental review called Trump as "a very complicated, long, and terrible licensing process." Furthermore, Donald Trump signed the presidential permission to allow TransCanada to build the Keystone XL pipeline on March 24, 2017.
On November 20, 2017, the Nebraska Public Service Commission approved (3-2) pipeline development, albeit via longer alternative routes, and was considered to have the least environmental impact compared to the other two routes considered. This proved to be a major setback for TransCanada because they will have "years of review and new legal challenges". TransCanada requested Nebraska to reconsider this decision and is currently working with the Channel and Dangerous Security Administration (PHMSA) to determine the structural cause of leaks in South Dakota on 21 November.
Keystone XL Controversy
The Keystone XL proposal faces criticism from environmental activists and a small number of US Congressmen. In January 2012, President Barack Obama rejected the application amid protests about the impact of the pipeline in the sensitive Sandbills area of ​​Nebraska. TransCanada Corporation changed the original Keystone XL proposed route to minimize "soil disturbance, water resources and special areas"; the new route was approved by Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman in January 2013. On April 18, 2014, the Obama administration announced that a review of the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline had been extended indefinitely, awaiting the outcome of a legal challenge to a law-enforcing Nebraska pipeline that could change route. On January 9, 2015, the Nebraska Supreme Court paved the way for development, and on the same day, the Council voted to support the pipeline. On January 29, 2015, the Keystone XL Pipeline was passed by the Senate 62-36. On February 11, 2015, the Keystone XL Pipeline was adopted by the House of Representatives with the proposed Senate Amendment 270-152. The Keystone XL Pipeline Bill is not officially sent to President Obama, initiating a 10-day official count towards the bill into law without a presidential signature, until February 24, 2015. Republicans postponed billing during the President's holiday weekend to ensure Congress will be at session if the president should veto the bill. On February 24, 2015, the bill was vetoed and returned for congressional action. On March 4, 2015, the Senate voted and failed to override President Obama's veto; voting is 62 to 37, less than two-thirds of the majority needed to override the presidential veto. Reviews by the State Department are ongoing. On June 15, 2015, the House Monitoring Committee threatened to summon the State Department for falsifying records relevant to the process since March 2015 and called the process "undisbursed". Although some records posted by consulting agencies such as the EPA, the Department of Foreign Affairs have not yet responded to the request. On November 2, 2015, TransCanada asked the Obama administration to suspend its permission application for Keystone XL.
In his speech announcing the rejection of the pipeline on November 6, 2015, President Obama deplored the symbolic importance of Keystone XL, stating, "For years, the Keystone pipeline has occupied what I, frankly, considered too excessive in our politics. being a symbol that is also often used as a bluff campaign by both parties rather than serious policy issues, and all this obscures the fact that this pipeline will not be a silver bullet for the economy, as promised by some, or an express pathway for the climate disaster proclaimed by Obama continued to recognize the symbolic importance, continuing by stating, "frankly, approving this project will weaken [the global leadership of the United States]" on climate change.
Environmental issues
Various environmental groups, citizens, and politicians have voiced concern about the potential negative impacts of the Keystone XL project. The main problem is the risk of oil spills along the pipeline, which will cross a very sensitive field, and 17% of greenhouse gas emissions higher than the extraction of oil sands compared to conventional oil extraction.
Oil spill potential
In 2010, there were concerns that the spillage of pipes could pollute the air and water supplies critically and endanger migratory birds and other wildlife. The route plan initially crosses Sandhills, the large wetland ecosystem in Nebraska, and Ogallala Aquifer, one of the largest freshwater reserves in the world. The Ogallala Aquifer covers eight states, provides drinking water for two million people, and supports $ 20 billion in agriculture. Critics say that major leaks could damage drinking water and destroy the western US central economy. After the opposition to install a pipe in this area, TransCanada agreed to change the route and pass the Sandhills.
Professor of the University of Nebraska, Dr. John Stansbury conducted an independent analysis that provided more details about the potential risks to Ogallala Aquifer. In his analysis, Dr. Stansbury concluded that the safety assessment provided by TransCanada is misleading. According to Dr. Stansbury, "We can expect no less than 2 large spills per country over the 50 year projected lifetime of the pipe, which could release as many as 180,000 barrels of oil per capita."
Other items of note in the analysis of Dr. Stansbury:
- "While TransCanada estimates that Keystone XL will have 11 significant spills (more than 50 barrels of crude oil) over the past 50 years, a more realistic assessment is 91 significant spillovers over the lifetime of pipeline operations. TransCanada is arbitrary and not The spill factor should be adjusted to produce an estimated one major spill in 1,673 mi (2,692 km) of pipes every five years, but federal data on the actual spill incident on comparable pipelines show the possibility of greater than nearly two large spills per year. The existing Keystone I channel has one major spill and 11 minor spills in the first year of operation. "
- "The timing analysis required to turn off the pipeline indicates that the response to leakage at the river crossings can conservatively take more than ten times longer than the 11 minutes and 30 seconds that TransCanada considered. (After a spill in June 2010 more than 800,000 US gallon (3,000,000 liters) of crude oil into the tributaries of the Kalamazoo River, a 30-inch (760 mm) Enbridge tar duct line compared to 36-inch Keystone XL (910 mm) - is not completely dead for 12 hours.) "
- "Realistic calculations resulted in estimates of the worst spill case of more than 180,000 barrels (7,600,000 US gal; 29,000,000 L) at Sandfills Nebraska over Ogallala Aquifer, more than 160,000 barrels (6.7 million US gal; 25,000,000 L ) of crude oil at the Yellowstone River crossing, more than 140,000 barrels (5,900,000 US gal; 22,000,000 L) at the Platte River crossings and over 120,000 barrels at the Missouri River crossing. "
- "Contaminants from discharges in Missouri or the Yellowstone River crossings will enter Sakakawea Lake in North Dakota where they will affect drinking water intake, water wildlife, and recreation Contaminants from spills at the Platte River crossing will run unstoppably downstream to the River Missouri for several hundred miles affects drinking water intake for hundreds of thousands of people (eg, Lincoln, NE, Omaha, NE, Kansas City, MO) as well as aquatic habitats and recreational activities.In addition, other constituents of the spill will pose a serious risk to humans and aquatic species in the river. "
- "The worst place for this kind of spill is in the Sandhills area of ​​Nebraska.The sandhills are ancient grass-degraded sand dunes.Because highly permeable geology, nearly 100 percent of annual rainfall seeps into a very shallow aquifer, often lacking from 20 feet below the surface.This aquifer is the famous Ogallala Aquifer which is one of the most prolific and important aquifers in the world. "
A spokesman for the pipeline industry has noted that thousands of miles of existing pipes carrying crude oil and fine liquid hydrocarbons have crossed Ogallala Aquifer over the years, in southeastern Wyoming, eastern Colorado and New Mexico, western Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. The Pioneer crude pipeline crosses east-west across Nebraska, and the Pony Express pipeline, which crosses Ogallala Aquifer in Colorado, Nebraska, and Kansas, is being converted in 2013 from natural gas to crude, under the permission of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
Part of the pipeline will also cross an active seismic zone that has a 4.3 magnitude earthquake at the end of 2002. Opponents claim that TransCanada is applied to the US government for using thinner steel and pumps at higher pressure than usual. In October 2011, The New York Times questioned the impartiality of a pipeline environmental analysis conducted by Cardno Entrix, a Houston-based environmental contractor. The study found that pipes would limit adverse environmental impacts, but were written by a company that "previously worked on projects with TransCanada and described the pipeline as the 'primary client' in its marketing materials". However, the Office of the Inspector General of the State Department investigates potential conflicts of interest, and reports in February 2012 that the investigation states there is no conflict of interest either in the selection of contractors or in the preparation of the environment. impact statement.
According to The New York Times, legal experts question whether the US government "violates the intent" of the Federal National Environmental Policy Act, which "is intended to ensure impartial environmental analysis of major projects." The report encouraged 14 senators and congressmen to ask the Inspector General of the Department of Foreign Affairs on October 26, 2011 "to investigate whether conflicts of interest pollute the process" to review the environmental impact. In August 2014, a study published that concluded the pipeline could produce up to 4 times more global warming pollution than the Ministry of Foreign Affairs study shows. The report blamed the gap on failure to account for increased consumption due to falling oil prices to be triggered by the pipeline.
TransCanada CEO Russ Girling has described the Keystone Pipeline as "routine", noting that TransCanada has built similar pipelines in North America for half a century and that there are 200,000 miles (320,000 km) of the same oil pipeline in the United States today. He also stated that Keystone Pipeline will include 57 improvements above the standard requirements requested by US regulators so far, making it "the safest pipe ever built". Rep. Ed Whitfield, a member of the Energy and Commerce Council Committee, agrees, saying "this is the most advanced and safest pipe ever proposed." However, while TransCanada has confirmed that a set of 57 conditions will ensure the safe operation of Keystone XL, Anthony Swift of the Natural Resources Defense Council confirms that all but a few of these conditions only restate the current minimum standards.
TransCanada claims that they will take 100% responsibility for any potential environmental issues. According to their website, "It's our responsibility - as a good company and under the law.If anything happens to the Keystone XL Pipeline, fast response is key.That is why our Emergency Response plan is approved by state and federal agencies, and why we practice regularly We conduct regular emergency workouts, and airborne surveys every two weeks We are ready to respond with a highly trained response team.
Leakage and 2017 South Dakota spill
By 2016, about 400 barrels are released from the original Keystone pipeline through leaks, which federal investigators say are generated from "welding anomalies."
On November 17, 2017, a leaking pipeline that the company claimed was 210,000 gallons of oil to farmland near Amherst, South Dakota. The oil leak is the largest seen from the Keystone pipeline in the state. This leak lasts for several minutes, with no initial reports of damage to water sources or wildlife. Although spills do not occur on the Sioux property, it is close enough to potentially contaminate the aquifers used for water. The pipeline soon closed, and TransCanada started using the pipeline again 12 days after the leak. By the end of 2017, the Keystone pipeline operates under reduced pressure during remediation efforts. The Federal Pipeline and the Hazardous Materials Safety Administration said that the failure "may be caused by mechanical damage to pipelines and pipe-related coatings laid out in pipes in 2008." In April 2018, a federal investigation found that 407,000 gallons were spilled on site, almost double what TransCanada reported. That number makes it the seventh largest oil spill since 2002.
In April 2018, Reuters reviewed a document showing that Keystone had "leaked more oil, and more often, in the United States than the company indicated to regulators in risk assessment before operations began in 2010."
Potential for carbon emissions
Environmental organizations such as the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) also oppose the project because of oil transportation from oil sands. In a March 2010 report, the NRDC stated that "Pipeline Keystone XL undermines US commitment to a clean energy economy", on the contrary "sending dirty fuel at a high cost". On June 23, 2010, 50 Democrats at Congress in their letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned that "building this pipeline has the potential to undermine America's clean energy future and international leadership on climate change", referring to a higher input quantity of fossil fuels are required to take the tar and turn it into a usable fuel product compared to other conventional fossil fuels.
NASA climate scientist James Hansen stated in 2013 that "moving to tar sands, one of the dirtiest, most carbon-intensive fuels on the planet" is a completely misguided move, "suggesting that the government does not understand the situation or that they are not caring. "The chairman of the House's Energy and Commerce Commission at the time, Representative Henry Waxman, also urged the State Department to block Keystone XL for greenhouse gas emissions reasons.
In December 2010, the No Tar Sands Oil campaign, sponsored by action groups including Corporate Ethics International, NRDC, Sierra Club, 350.org, National Wildlife Federation, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace and Rainforest Action Network, was launched.
In a speech to the Canadian Club in Toronto on September 23, 2011, Joe Oliver, the Minister of Natural Resources of Canada, strongly criticized opponents of the development of oil sands and pipes, arguing that:
- The total area affected by surface mining represents only 0.1% of Canadian boreal forests.
- Oil sand accounts for about 0.1% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
- Coal-powered plants in the US generate nearly 40 times more greenhouse gas emissions than Canadian oil sands (coal-fired power plants in the State of Wisconsin alone produce the equivalent of overall greenhouse gas emissions from GHG emissions).
- California's biofuels are more intensive against greenhouse gases than oil sands.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs' final Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS Final) estimates that producing and transporting oil to pipeline capacity will increase greenhouse gas emissions compared to alternative sources of oil. However, these estimates will only apply to the overall pipe project if the rejection of the pipeline project means that the oil will remain on the ground. "However, [...] such a change is unlikely to happen. [A] The pproval or rejection of any of the crude transport projects, including the proposed Project, may not significantly impact the level of extraction in oil sands, or the continuing demand for heavy crude oil. "Insofar as the oil will be extracted in any case, the relevant comparison will be an alternative means of transporting it; SEIS Final considers three alternative scenarios and finds that "the total GHG emissions associated with construction and combined (direct and indirect) operations will be higher for each of the three scenarios than for the overall route covering the proposed Project." The final SEIS does not make an estimate of the net effect of the project on greenhouse gas emissions, considering both the amount of oil that is likely to replace other sources (increasing emissions) and the amount of oil that pipes will only replace alternative ways of transport (reducing emissions).
In a Feb. 2, 2015 letter for the Final Environmental Statement from the US Department of State (SEIS END) for the Keystone XL Pipeline Project, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) stated that the pipeline would significantly increase greenhouse gas emissions as it would lead to an expansion oilands carbon intensive Alberta. The letter goes on to add that over the proposed 50-year period of the pipeline, this could mean releasing as much as "1.37 billion tons more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere". According to the New York Times, the EPA concluded that because of the relatively cheap oil costs currently, companies may be less likely to develop their own development in oil sands. It would be too costly for a company to ship by train. However, "the presence of pipes, which offer an inexpensive way to move oil to the market, could increase the likelihood companies will extract from oil sands even when prices are low". In a letter of response, the EPA suggested that the State Department should "review" previous conclusions in connection with falling oil prices.
TransCanada Corporation responded with a letter of its own, in which President and CEO Russell K. Girling stated that TransCanada "rejects the EPA's conclusion that at lower oil prices the [Pipeline XL Pipeline] Project will increase the growth rate of oil sand production and accompany greenhouse gas emissions". Girling argues that the EPA's conclusion "is not supported by the facts outlined in the SEIS End or actual observations of the market".
Conflict of interest
On May 4, 2012, the US State Department selected Environmental Resource Management (ERM) to draft an Additional Environmental Impact Statement, after the Environmental Protection Agency found a previous version of research, by Cardno Entrix contractor, to be highly inadequate. Opponents of the project highlighted the research at its launch, calling it a "very wrong analysis". An investigation by Mother Jones (magazine) reveals that the State Department has changed the biography of study authors to hide their previous contract work for TransCanada and other oil companies with economic interests in the project. Based on the analysis of public documents on the Department of Foreign Affairs website, one critic stressed that "Environmental Resource Management paid an undisclosed amount under a contract for TransCanada to write a statement".
Political issues
The pipeline is a top-level election issue for the US presidential election on November 4, 2014, for the US Senate, for the US House of Representatives, for governors in states and territories, and for many state and local positions as well. A year's election dilemma facing the Democratic Party is whether or not Obama should approve the completion of the Keystone XL pipeline. Tom Steyer, and other wealthy environmental activists, are committed to "making climate change a key issue" in the election by opposing Keystone XL as "an important part of that effort." In the election, the Republicans had 13 Council seats (getting their biggest majority in the House since 1928) and 9 Senate seats (being the majority party there).
In February 2011, environmental journalist David Sassoon of Inside Climate News reported that Koch Industries was ready to be the "big winner" of the pipeline. In May 2011, Congressmen Waxman and Rush wrote to the Energy and Commerce Committee citing the Reuters story, and urged the Committee to request documents from Koch Industries related to the Keystone XL pipeline.
Landowners in the pipeline have complained about threats by TransCanada to confiscate private land and lawsuits to allow "pipeline on their property even though the controversial project has not received federal approval". On October 17, 2011, TransCanada has "34 leading domain actions against landowners in Texas" and "22 in South Dakota". Some of the landowners gave testimony to the House of Commerce & Commerce Committee hearing in May 2011. In his book The Pipeline and the Paradigm, Samuel Avery quoted landowner David Daniel in Texas, claiming that TransCanada illegally arrested landed through a leading domain by claiming to be a public utility rather than a private company.
In January 2012, the presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) And Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) Request a new report on the environmental review process.
In September 2015, nominee President Hillary Clinton publicly declared his opposition to Keystone XL, with reasons for climate change. Diploma issues
Commentator Bill Mann has linked the Keystone postponement to the Michigan Senate's refusal of Canadian funding for the proposed Gordie Howe International Bridge and with other recent examples of "US government action (and absence of action) showing little concern about Canada's concerns". Mann drew attention to the Maclean subtitle article "we used to be friends" about US/Canadian relations after President Obama "insulted Canada (again)" through the pipeline.
Canadian Doer Ambassador observes that "Obama's choice is to lower it through the pipeline he agrees, or without his consent, he goes down to the train."
During the 2014 Pacific Economic Area Summit in Whistler, B.C., US Ambassador in Canada Gary Doer stated that there is no evidence, environmental, economic, safety or scientific, that construction work on Keystone XL should not continue. Doer said that all evidence supports a favorable decision by the US government for a controversial pipeline.
In contrast, Sioux Rosebud State President Cyril Scott has stated that the November 14, 2014 election in favor of the Keystone XL pipeline in the US House of Representatives is a "war act", stating:
We are angry because of the lack of cooperation between governments. We are a sovereign nation, and we are not treated as such. We will close our reservation limit to Keystone XL. The Keystone XL authorization is an act of war against our people.
Geopolitical issues
Advocates for the Keystone XL pipeline argue that it will allow the US to increase its energy security and reduce its dependence on foreign oil. TransCanada CEO Russ Girling believes that "the US needs 10 million barrels of imported oil per day" and the debate about the proposed pipeline "is not an argument about oil versus alternative energy.This is a debate about whether you want to get your oil from Canada or Venezuela or Nigeria. However, an independent study conducted by the ILR Cornell Institute of Global Labor refers to several studies (eg a 2011 study by Danielle Droitsch of the Pembina Institute) which he says "most of the oil that will wet the KXL may end up being ultimately consumed outside the Americas States ". It also stated that the project will increase the price of heavy crude oil in the Midwestern United States by diverting oil-based oil from the Midwest oil refineries to the Gulf Coast and export markets.
The US Gulf Coast has a large concentration of refineries designed to process very heavy crude oil. Currently, the refineries depend on heavy crude oil from Venezuela, including crude oil from the huge Orinoco oil sands of Venezuela. The United States is the number one buyer of crude oil exported from Venezuela. Major trade ties between the US and Venezuela have been longstanding despite political tensions between the two countries. However, the volume of oil imported into the US from Venezuela fell by half from 2007 to 2014, as Venezuelan exports overall declined, and also because Venezuela sought to become less dependent on US purchases of its crude. The Keystone pipeline is seen as a way to replace the import of heavy crude sand from Venezuela with more reliable Canadian heavy oil.
Girling TransCanada also believes that if Canadian oil does not reach the Gulf through an eco-buried pipe that the alternative is oil to be carried by tankers, a mode of transport that generates higher greenhouse gas emissions and that puts the environment at greater risk. Diane Francis argues that much of the opposition to oil sands actually comes from foreign countries such as Nigeria, Venezuela and Saudi Arabia, all of which supply oil to the United States and which could be affected if oil prices fall due to new oil supplies from the pipeline. He cites as an example of an attempt by Saudi Arabia to stop pro-oil-sand television commercials. TransCanada has said that the development of oil sands will grow regardless of whether crude oil is exported to the United States or to the Asian market via the Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline or Kinder Morgan's Trans-Mountain line.
Indigenous issues
Many Native Americans and Indigenous Canadians oppose the Keystone XL project for various reasons, including possible damage to sacred sites, pollution, and water contamination, which can cause health risks among their communities.
On September 19th, 2011, a number of leaders from Native American bands in the United States and Canada's First Nations band were arrested for protesting Keystone XL outside the White House. According to Debra White Plume, a Lakota activist, indigenous peoples "have thousands of ancient cultural resources and history that will be destroyed in their promised land". The TransCanada Pipeline Permit Application to the South Dakota Public Utility Commission states the impact of the project that includes potential physical disturbances, dismantling or displacement of "prehistoric or historic archaeological sites, districts, buildings, structures, objects and locations with traditional cultural values ​​for Native Americans and others group ".
Indigenous peoples are also concerned about the health risks posed by the expansion of the Keystone pipeline. Locally caught fish and untreated surface waters will be at risk of contamination through oil sands extraction, and are the dietary hub of many indigenous peoples. Earl Hatley, an environmental activist who has worked with Native American tribes has expressed concern about the environmental and public health impacts on Native Americans.
TransCanada has developed an Aboriginal Relationship policy to deal with some of these conflicts. In 2004, TransCanada made a major contribution to the University of Toronto "to promote education and research in the health of Aboriginal people". Another proposed solution is the TransCanada Aboriginal Human Resource Strategy, developed to facilitate the work of indigenous people and to provide "opportunities for Aboriginal businesses to participate in both the construction of new facilities and the maintenance of existing facilities".
Economic issues
Russ Girling, TransCanada's president and CEO, praised the project's positive impact by "putting 20,000 US workers to work and spending $ 7 billion to stimulate the US economy." These figures are from a 2010 report by The Perryman Group, a Texas based financial analysis company hired by TransCanada to evaluate Keystone XL. The figures in the Perryman Group report have been debated by an independent study conducted by the ILR Cornell Institute for Global Labor, which found that while Keystone XL will generate 2,500 to 4,650 temporary construction jobs, this impact will be reduced with higher oil prices in the Midwest, which is likely to reduce national employment. However, it will increase the availability of gasoline to the Northeast and expand the Gulf refinery industry. The State Department estimates that the pipeline will create about 5,000 to 6,000 temporary jobs in the United States during a two-year construction period.
On January 27, 2012, Greenpeace Executive Director Phil Radford appealed to the US Securities and Exchange Commission to review TransCanada's claim that Keystone Pipeline will create 20,000 jobs. Stating that the company has "consistently used public statements and information known to be wrong in an integrated effort to gain approval" from the pipeline, Radford believes that TransCanada has "misled investors, US and Canadian officials, the media and the public at large to improve the balance sheet and share price ".
On July 27, 2013, President Obama declared "The most realistic estimate is that this might create 2,000 jobs during pipeline construction, which may take a year or two, and then after that we talk about somewhere between 50 and 100 jobs in the 150 economy million people working. "The 2,000 forecasts during construction are under severe attack, while estimates of long-term permanent employment do not receive much criticism. The Associated Press notes that it is unclear where the president's figure of 2,000 jobs comes from. Additional Environmental Impact Statement The US State Department, issued in March 2013, estimates 3,900 direct jobs and 42,000 direct and indirect jobs during construction. According to the End-of-End Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS), Pipe Line will only create 35 permanent jobs.
There may be undesirable economic consequences to the development of Keystone XL. For example, the additional capacity of north-south crude transport transport carried by Keystone XL will increase the prices received by oil-producing producers for their oil. This higher income will have a positive impact on industrial development in Alberta. In return, due to Petrodollar's nature of the Canadian currency, this same additional income will strengthen the Canadian dollar versus the US dollar. Based on historical trends, a stronger Canadian dollar will result in a reduction in the competitiveness of Canada's manufacturing industry and could lead to the loss of 50,000 to 100,000 jobs in Canada's manufacturing sector. Many of these jobs, like those in the automotive industry, are likely to find their way south and have a positive impact on manufacturing jobs in the US.
Glen Perry, an oil engineer for Adira Energy, has warned that including the Alberta Clipper pipeline owned by TransCanada's competitor, Enbridge, there is an excess of oil pipeline excess from Canada. After completing the Keystone XL line, the oil pipeline to the US can run almost half empty. The lack of expected volume combined with extensive construction cost swelling has prompted some petroleum refiners to sue TransCanada. Suncor Energy hopes to cover significant construction costs, even though the US Energy Regulatory Commission is not in charge at their request. According to The Globe and Mail ,
Distillers argue that construction overruns have raised shipping costs on the Canadian part of Keystone by 145 percent while the US share has run more than 92 percent of the budget. They accused TransCanada of misleading them when they signed a shipping contract in the summer of 2007. TransCanada nearly doubled its construction forecast in October 2007, from $ 2.8 billion (US) to $ 5.2 billion.
Because the exception of the state of Kansas gave TransCanada, the local government would lose $ 50 million in public revenues from property taxes for a decade.
In the United States, the Democratic Party is worried that Keystone XL will not provide oil products for domestic use, but only facilitates the acquisition of Alberta oil sands to American coastal ports in the Gulf of Mexico for export to China and other countries. In January 2015, the Republican Senate blocked a vote on an amendment proposed by Senator Edward J. Markey, D-Mass., Which would ban the export of the Keystone XL pipeline and require that pipes be built with steel from the United States.
Frustrated by the delay in getting approval for Keystone XL (via the Gulf of Mexico), Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipelines (via Kitimat, BC) and the extension of the existing TransMountain line to Vancouver, Alberta has intensified the exploration of two northern projects "to help the province get its oil into tidewater, make it available for export to overseas market ". Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, spent $ 9 million in May 2012 and $ 16.5 million in May 2013 to promote Keystone XL. Until Canadian crude oil accesses international prices such as LLS or Mayan crude oil by "getting to the tidewater" (south to US Gulf port via Keystone XL for example, west to Pacific coast BC via the proposed Gateway North path to port in Kitimat, BC or north via Tuktoyaktuk northern hamlet, near the Beaufort Sea), the Alberta government (and to some extent, the Canadian government) lost from $ 4 - 30 billion in tax revenue and royalties as a major product of oil sands, Western Canadian Select (WCS), asphalt basket , heavily discounted on West Texas Intermediate (WTI) while Mayan crude, a similar product close to the tidewater, reaches peak prices. The Calgary-based Canadian West Foundation warned in April 2013 that Alberta "ran against the wall [pipe capacity] around 2016, when we will have an oil barrel we can not move."
Opponents of the pipeline warn of farm and farming disturbances during construction, and show damages to sewerage and sewerage sustained during the construction of the Enbridge crude pipe in Michigan. A report by the Cornell University Global Labor Institute records the 2010 Enbridge Tar Oil Spill along the Kalamazoo River in Michigan: "The Kalamazoo residents and business experience provides insights into some of the ways communities can be affected by tar sand spills.Spill spills are not just environmental problems. pipes can also result in significant economic and job costs, although systematic tracking of the social, health, and economic impacts of pipeline spills is not required by law Leaks and spills from Keystone XL and other tar sands and conventional crude oil pipelines may jeopardize existing work.. "
Security issues
Editorial USA Today shows that gerbl-gÃÆ' Â © 2013 in Quebec, where crude oil carried by railway cars exploded and killed 47 people, highlighting pipeline security compared to truck or train transportation. The oil in the Lacant Mán car railing comes from the Bakken Formation in North Dakota, the area to be served by the Keystone expansion. The increase in oil production in North Dakota has exceeded pipeline capacity since 2010, leading to an increase in the volume of crude oil sent by truck or train to refineries. Canadian journalist Diana Furchtgott-Roth commented: "If oil shipments are made through pipelines, not trains, families in Lac-MÃÆ'Â © gantic will not mourn for loved ones lost today, and oil will not pollute Lac MÃÆ'Â © gantic and the Chaudi River. "The Wall Street Journal article in March 2014 shows that the main reason oil producers from the North Dakota area of ​​Bakken Shale use trains and trucks to transport oil is the economy instead of pipeline capacity. Bakken oil has a higher quality than Canadian sand oil and can be sold to east coast refineries at a premium price so they will not ship it to the Gulf refinery. The article goes on to state that there is little support left among these producers for Keystone XL.
On November 6, 2015, President Obama rejected Keystone XL citing the urgency of climate change as the main reason behind its decision.
Public opinion
Public opinion polls conducted by an independent national polling organization on the beginning of a dispute show majority support for the proposed pipeline in the US. The September 2013 poll by the Pew Center found 65% liked the project and 30% opposed. The same poll found the pipeline favored by the majority of men (69%), women (61%), Democrats (51%), Republican (82%), independent (64%), and by them in every division of age, education , economic status, and geographic area. The only group identified by Pew polls with less than majority support for the pipeline was among those Democrats who identified themselves as liberal (41% support versus 54% opposed). In contrast, the same polling organization published the results of a February poll in February 2017 showing that support for the pipeline has dropped to just 42% by early 2017, with 48% of respondents surveyed against the pipeline. The Pew Center reported a drop of 17 percentage points in support since 2014, with most shifts due to the sharp drop in support among Democrats and independent lean Democrats. At the time of the vote, only 17% of Democrats love pipes. Support among Republicans also declined (to 76%) but not as sharply as among Democrats.
The overall results of the polls on the Keystone XL pipeline taken by an independent national polling organization before 2014 are as follows:
- Gallup (March 2012): 57% government must approve, 29% government should not approve
- Rasmussen (January 2014): 57% support, 28% opposed (likely voters)
- Pew Center (September 2013): 65% support, 30% opposed
- Washington Post-ABC News (April 2014): 65% government must approve, 22% government should not approve
- USA Today (January 2014): 56% agree, 41% opposed
- CBS News - Roper (May 2014): 56% support, 28% opposed
Ongoing development
Protests and delays
In 2011, environmental activist and global warming, Bill McKibben brought the question of pipeline to NASA scientist James Hansen, who told McKibben that the pipeline would be "a game for the planet". McKibben and other activists organized the opposition, which united in August 2011 with over 1000 nonviolent arrests at the White House, which included environmental leaders such as Phil Radford and celebrities including Daryl Hannah. They promised to continue challenging President Obama to stand up in 2008 calling for "becoming a generation that eventually frees America from oil tyranny" as he enters the 2012 re-election campaign. The relatively broad coalition comes together, including Republican governors Dave Heineman and Senator Ben Nelson and Mike Johanns from Nebraska, and some Democratic supporters like Susie Tompkins Buell.
On 6 November 2011, several thousand environmental supporters, some carrying a long black pipe replica, formed a human chain around the White House to convince Barack Obama to block the controversial Keystone XL project. Bill McKibben's agenda says, "This is not only the greatest environmental point of the decade in many years, but it may be the recent issue in the Obama administration when it is most directly confronted by people on the streets, in which people are willing, hopeful, almost dying for him to be Barack Obama in 2008. "
On October 4, 2012, the actress and a
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