State Department sees no environmental red flags on Keystone route

[WestVirginiaRebel]

CNN:

The State Department said Friday that the Keystone pipeline expansion should have no significant effect on the environment along its proposed route, but stopped short of saying whether or not the controversial pipeline should be approved.

If the company behind the pipeline, TransCanada, follows all the rules, its "construction and normal operation" of the pipeline should pose no major risks, the State Department said in its draft environmental impact statement. That statement is now open for a 45-day public comment period. The Obama administration will make its decision about the pipeline later this year, likely in mid-summer.

The project was delayed last year because of concerns about how it would affect Nebraska's sensitive Sand Hills region. The Obama administration -- which needs to approve the project because it crosses an international border -- turned down those plans, forcing TransCanada to draft a new proposed route.

The pipeline has touched off an intense debate in the United States. Supporters like it because it will carry 830,000 barrels a day of oil from Alberta, Canada, to the U.S. Gulf Coast, potentially reducing imports from other, more volatile areas. Its construction will create an estimated 5,000 jobs, according to the State Department. TransCanada forecasts even higher job growth.

________

 

So much for that argument. But I'm sure the Obama administration will think of something else...

[Valin]

So if the Keystone pipeline happens, cute puppies won't die horrible deaths?