TransCanada, the company behind the rejected Keystone XL tar sands pipeline sent a letter to the US State Department announcing its intention to circumvent US environmental review and build the southern portion of the proposed crude oil pipeline from Cushing, OK, to Port Arthur, TX. In the month since President Obama denied the permit the company has undertaken an unprecedented lobbying and public relations effort to gain approval for the pipeline.
In response, Michael Brune, Sierra Club Executive Director, issued the following statement:
“TransCanada is hell bent on bringing tar sands, the world’s dirtiest oil, through America to reach foreign markets. They can’t wait for a fair, scientific environmental review they know their pipeline would fail. So we see dirty political tricks, dirty PR tricks, and, now, this dirty trick to build the pipeline piecemeal.
“With TransCanada it’s ‘safety last.’ The first US Keystone pipeline averaged a leak a month. But the company can’t wait to divert tar sands crude oil from the Midwest to the Gulf, raising American oil prices and, likely, also gasoline prices. This Oklahoma to Texas segment of the Keystone XL pipeline will mean more tar sands converted to diesel and available for export overseas.
“With this announcement TransCanada is telling the Americans that it is above the law. The company did not expect public scrutiny on this project, but the American people are watching and we are unwilling to sacrifice American farmers and ranchers, and the drinking water for millions of Americans whose water supplies lie below or downstream of this dangerous pipeline.”
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