Rumor that Obama will nix Keystone has pipeline supporters worried, opponents hopeful

[Geee]

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Most Americans are looking forward to enjoying themselves over the upcoming three-day Labor Day weekend.

 

But Virgil Novotny, a South Dakota rancher and former member of the Tripp County Commission, is worried that reports of President Obama denying the federal permit for the Keystone XL pipeline may come true during the holiday — and that could mean a big loss for the rural county that straddles the Nebraska state line.

 

“I think it would be an asinine thing to reject this,” Novotny told Watchdog.org. “It (the pipeline) would be a good thing to use the energy from the Canadian source. They’re our friends.”

 

But the biggest factor in Novotny’s mind is what the project would mean for Tripp County’s finances.

 

Revenue projections are as controversial as the pipeline itself, with some estimating the Keystone pipeline would mean up to $1 million a year for the rural county of 6,430 whose median household income is $28,333 — where almost one-fifth live below the poverty line.