Nebraska regulators approved the Keystone XL pipeline Monday, clearing the last big regulatory hurdle for the controversial oil project after nearly a decade of bitter protests from environmentalists and landowners and delivering a win for President Donald Trump's drive for U.S. "energy dominance."
The Nebraska Public Service Commission voted 3-2 to approve the route through the state for the pipeline that will transport up to 830,000 barrels per day of crude from Canada's oil sands and North Dakota's shale fields to oil refineries on the Gulf Coast. Former President Barack Obama had blocked the permits for the pipeline in 2015, citing the oil sands' impact on climate change, but Trump quickly reversed that decision after taking office.
The approval in Nebraska comes as TransCanada, the company seeking to build the project, adds new crews to its clean-up operations in South Dakota, where the original Keystone Pipeline ruptured last week and released 210,000 gallons of oil. But Nebraska law bars the the regulators from considering spills or pipeline safety in its decision-making process.
TVNL Comment: Here's hoping you won't live to regret this move. Last week's spill was not lesson enough. Maybe a far greater rupture in the future will teach Nebraskans a more realistic truth about the dangers of this pipeline.
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