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Originally Posted by spence
the project is clearly moving forward...-spence
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they didn't "approve the southern portion last month", it was already approved but held up by State pending approval of the rest:
The pipeline to which Obama alluded is only being constructed because TransCanada redefined the project to avoid the State Department's regulatory control over the Keystone XL pipeline. "[TransCanada] informed the DOS that what had been the Cushing to U.S. Gulf Coast portion of the Keystone XL Project has its own independent value to the marketplace and will be constructed as a stand-alone Gulf Coast Project, not part of the Presidential Permit process," the company announced two weeks ago.
Obama touts southern half of Keystone pipeline | Campaign 2012 | Washington Examiner
The State Department indicated last month that it would not expedite a review of any new application for the cross-border portion of the pipeline.
this is how you tell people that you approved something while cynically killing it....very Obama like
you should read your own links...P-O-L-I-T-I-C-A-L
"Opponents mounted two large protests around the White House last year, calling for an end to the project. Mr. Obama tried to finesse the issue by delaying a decision until after the presidential election, but Republicans in Congress forced his hand. "
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/28/science/earth/keystone-pipeline-permit-request-to-be-renewed.html[/url]
Confusion Surrounds Federal Review of Southern Leg of Keystone XL
Saturday 10 March 2012
by: Lisa Song, InsideClimate News | Report
TransCanada says it has most of the state permits it needs, but no one knows which federal agency will oversee the project's final environmental review.
TransCanada's decision last week to build the southern half of the rejected Keystone XL has raised a tricky question about who will regulate the project review.
The process could be stickier at the federal level. The U.S. State Department was the lead agency on the original Keystone XL because it crossed an international boundary. But so far, no agency has stepped forward to take responsibility for the Gulf Coast Project.
The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, or PHMSA—a section of the federal Department of Transportation that regulates interstate pipeline safety—will definitely play a role in the review process. But when InsideClimate News asked if PHMSA would lead the project review, we didn't get a direct answer.
"All pipelines must be designed and constructed to meet federal, state and local safety standards," Jeannie Layson, PHMSA's public affairs director, said in a statement. "DOT will help coordinate with federal partners and among state agencies to streamline the process and ensure a safe start to the new pipeline."
Howard said that one of TransCanada's regulatory lawyers has identified the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as the lead agency.
But Army Corps spokesman Doug Garman said it's too early to speculate on the agency's role. The Army Corps has a responsibility under the Clean Water Act to regulate water permits for pipelines that cross streams and rivers, he said. "[Our] jurisdiction is just for work [concerning] waters of the U.S. and not for the entire pipeline route."
"At the moment, no permit applications have been provided and there have not been conversations with any other federal agencies," Garman told InsideClimate News.
Howard said TransCanada is trying to arrange meetings with the Army Corps to discuss what's needed for the pipeline permits. "It's our hope that we can begin construction this summer, and we're building our plans on that kind of timeframe. But obviously the actual timing depends on certain approvals being in place at certain times."
"At the moment, no permit applications have been provided and there have not been conversations with any other federal agencies," Garman told InsideClimate News.
But TransCanada's Howard said the Gulf Coast Project is a stand-alone pipeline with "its own independent commercial value." The pipeline would help relieve the current glut of oil at Cushing by moving excess crude oil to Texas, where it will be refined.
"We have sufficient contracts in place regardless of what happens" to the northern segment of Keystone XL, Howard said.
Droitsch argues that the Gulf Coast Project needs a comprehensive environmental impact statement, and that it's important to have a lead agency to coordinate the review process.
"If the State Department isn't able to oversee the Gulf Coast segment for obvious reasons, then that does not mean other parts of the Obama administration are off the hook for ensuring compliance with environmental and cultural preservation laws," she said.
The Keystone XL's Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS), published in August, didn't adequately address issues of refinery emissions and pipeline safety, Droitsch said. She also pointed out that the Environmental Protection Agency—which noted significant problems with earlier versions of the EIS—never submitted comments on the final document.
"As far as the environmental community is concerned, that [FEIS] was never completely final," she said.
Howard said the Gulf Coast Project will not require a new environmental impact study.
Wanna Bet
"There's been three and a half years of environmental review on the entire pipeline route," he said. "Saying that there needs to be more environmental review on the same route is just a stalling tactic by professional activists."
worked on the northern portion
Hybrid Mode
