Premier Brad Wall hopes the Nebraska governor’s approval of a new Keystone XL oil pipeline route through the state helps convince U. S. President Barack Obama to sign off on the project.
Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman approved a new route for the pipeline on Tuesday that avoids the state’s environmentally sensitive Sandhills region. The approval comes several days after Wall sent a letter signed by 10 state governors to Obama urging the White House to sanction the project.
“Today’s news is important for Keystone and it’s important for Canada as a major energy player,” Wall told reporters Tuesday in Saskatoon
“It’s important for our neighbours to the west in Alberta and it is very important for the people of Saskatchewan. . . . We welcome today’s announcement because if this pipeline is ever approved by the Obama administration it means real things for Saskatchewan. It means more resources in the treasury to invest in infrastructure and pay down debt.”
The governor’s approval could influence the Obama administration to endorse the pipeline, Wall said. The president pledged during the 2012 presidential election to make the U.S. more energy independent and that could start with the Keystone, he added.
“(The letter) was about making the case for the Keystone, but it’s also about awareness because at the end of the day, until a decision is made, there is a political phase,” Wall said. “We need to get more information out to Americans about what Keystone is all about.
“When they’re dealing with Canada they’re dealing with a country that has a stellar — imperfect but stellar — record on human rights compared to where they might buy oil from in the Middle East. We have a much stronger record when it comes to the environment.”
Heineman sent a letter Obama confirming he would allow the controversial Canada-to-Texas pipeline to proceed through his state. The project has faced some of its strongest resistance in Nebraska from a coalition of landowners and environmental groups who say it would contaminate the Ogallala aquifer, a massive groundwater supply.
Canadian pipeline developer TransCanada and some workers’ unions say the project is safe and will create thousands of jobs.
The original route would have run the pipeline through a region of erodible, grass-covered sand dunes. The new route skirts that area, although the pipeline’s most vocal critics remain firmly opposed to it as well.
Heineman said previously he would oppose any pipeline route through the Sandhills region. In his letter to Obama, he said the new 320-kilometre route through Nebraska avoids the Sandhills but would still cross part of the aquifer. Heineman said any spills would be localized and the cleanup responsibilities would fall to TransCanada.
The governor said the project would result in $418.1 million US in economic benefits for the state and $16.5 million US in taxes from the pipeline construction materials.
One in seven barrels in the proposed pipeline will be conventional oil from the Bakken formation, which Saskatchewan shares with North Dakota and Montana, Wall said.
“Any relief in terms of pipelining and moving that energy out of the formation is something that we welcome,” he said.
The pipeline will bring economic benefits to businesses and communities along the pipeline’s path through Saskatchewan, he added.
Read more: Wall applauds Nebraska gov. Keystone approval
Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman approved a new route for the pipeline on Tuesday that avoids the state’s environmentally sensitive Sandhills region. The approval comes several days after Wall sent a letter signed by 10 state governors to Obama urging the White House to sanction the project.
“Today’s news is important for Keystone and it’s important for Canada as a major energy player,” Wall told reporters Tuesday in Saskatoon
“It’s important for our neighbours to the west in Alberta and it is very important for the people of Saskatchewan. . . . We welcome today’s announcement because if this pipeline is ever approved by the Obama administration it means real things for Saskatchewan. It means more resources in the treasury to invest in infrastructure and pay down debt.”
The governor’s approval could influence the Obama administration to endorse the pipeline, Wall said. The president pledged during the 2012 presidential election to make the U.S. more energy independent and that could start with the Keystone, he added.
“(The letter) was about making the case for the Keystone, but it’s also about awareness because at the end of the day, until a decision is made, there is a political phase,” Wall said. “We need to get more information out to Americans about what Keystone is all about.
“When they’re dealing with Canada they’re dealing with a country that has a stellar — imperfect but stellar — record on human rights compared to where they might buy oil from in the Middle East. We have a much stronger record when it comes to the environment.”
Heineman sent a letter Obama confirming he would allow the controversial Canada-to-Texas pipeline to proceed through his state. The project has faced some of its strongest resistance in Nebraska from a coalition of landowners and environmental groups who say it would contaminate the Ogallala aquifer, a massive groundwater supply.
Canadian pipeline developer TransCanada and some workers’ unions say the project is safe and will create thousands of jobs.
The original route would have run the pipeline through a region of erodible, grass-covered sand dunes. The new route skirts that area, although the pipeline’s most vocal critics remain firmly opposed to it as well.
Heineman said previously he would oppose any pipeline route through the Sandhills region. In his letter to Obama, he said the new 320-kilometre route through Nebraska avoids the Sandhills but would still cross part of the aquifer. Heineman said any spills would be localized and the cleanup responsibilities would fall to TransCanada.
The governor said the project would result in $418.1 million US in economic benefits for the state and $16.5 million US in taxes from the pipeline construction materials.
One in seven barrels in the proposed pipeline will be conventional oil from the Bakken formation, which Saskatchewan shares with North Dakota and Montana, Wall said.
“Any relief in terms of pipelining and moving that energy out of the formation is something that we welcome,” he said.
The pipeline will bring economic benefits to businesses and communities along the pipeline’s path through Saskatchewan, he added.
Read more: Wall applauds Nebraska gov. Keystone approval