TransCanada’s application for a permit for the Keystone XL pipeline has been rejected---but the matter could be far from over.
During his news conference Friday morning, President Obama said the pipeline wouldn’t serve the national interest or make a long-term economic contribution.
Bold Nebraska director Jane Kleeb says it’s a victory for the people over corporations.
“Every day we have woken up and gone to bed thinking about the Keystone XL. And not a single politician in our state stood with farmers and ranchers and our Native brothers and sisters in order to stop this pipeline. It was we the people who stopped this pipeline.”
UNO political scientist Paul Landow says politics were the main driver in the President’s decision. Landow says the issue could resurface depending on who’s elected President next year.
“Hillary Clinton has already said she’s opposed to the Keystone pipeline. So I think that means that TransCanada will be hoping that a Democrat doesn’t win next year. If a Republican is elected to the White House, with a Republican Congress, the wheels could start turning again. And they could move pretty rapidly.”
TransCanada applied for a permit seven years ago for the Alberta-to-Gulf Coast pipeline project. A group of Nebraska landowners challenged the company’s plans in court, expressing concern about the possible effects on the state’s land and water. Earlier this week, TransCanada asked the U.S. State Department to halt its review of the project.
In a statement, TransCanada president and CEO Russ Girling says “misplaced symbolism was chosen over merit and science-rhetoric won out over reason…Today’s decision deals a damaging blow to jobs, the economy, and the environment on both sides of the border.”
Governor Pete Ricketts issued a statement saying the Keystone XL pipeline “would’ve brought good-paying jobs and much-needed tax revenue to Nebraska’s counties. President Obama’s politically-motivated decision to reject this project puts the jobs and this tax revenue at risk.”