Loads of articles came out Wednesday, June 9, 2021 announcing the end to the controversial Keystone XL pipeline. They may report that the company decided to stop, but what really stopped the pipeline was organizing by Indigenous people and many allies.
(CNN)The developer of the Keystone XL pipeline announced Wednesday it is pulling the plug on the controversial project after the Biden administration revoked its permit in January.
TC Energy, the Canadian company behind the project, said it decided to terminate the project after a comprehensive review of its options and consulting with the government of Alberta, Canada. The company said it would coordinate with regulators, stakeholders and Indigenous groups to ensure a safe exit from the project.
The cancellation ends more than a decade of controversy over the pipeline and marks a big win for environmentalists who argued the project threatened the environment and would only worsen the climate crisis.
“The termination of this zombie pipeline sets precedent for President Biden and polluters to stop Line 3, Dakota Access, and all fossil fuel projects,” Kendall Mackey, campaign manager of 350.org’s Keep It in the Ground campaign, said in a statement.
The project aimed to carry oil from the tar sands of Canada into the United States, and it has been a political football for years.
On his first day in the White House, President Joe Biden revoked the permit his predecessor granted to Keystone XL, and also moved to re-enter the United States in the Paris climate agreement. TC Energy warned at the time that the decision by Biden would “directly lead to the layoff of thousands of union workers.”
The end of Keystone XL will add to the pressure on Biden from environmentalists to terminate other projects, including Line 3 and the Dakota Access pipeline.
By Matt Egan, CNN Business, June 9, 2021.
See the full article HERE.
Photo credit: “Keystone XL Pipeline March, Santa Barbara CA” by 350.org is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0