By Kyle Pratt
Contributing Writer
The name of the pipeline may be “Keystone-XL,” but the benefits of it are definitely XS. The Keystone-XL pipeline is not necessarily an entirely new pipeline, but one that reduces the amount of time needed for oil to get to the Gulf of Mexico from Canada.
The Keystone Pipeline already exists, and extends from Hardisty, a town in Alberta, Canada, to Patoka, Illinois. There is an extension that intersects the line in Steele City, Nebraska, and brings oil to the Gulf of Mexico.
The existing pipeline is an L-shape, extending East across Canada, and then heading South towards the Gulf. The proposed Keystone-XL pipeline would create a direct path from Hardisty to Steele City, cutting of the L-shape, and with it, travel time.
Supporters of the new line say it will create jobs for Americans as well as further our pursuit for energy independence. The website for the pipeline, which is owned by TransCanada, says the Keystone-XL pipeline will “not only bring essential infrastructure to North American oil producers, but it will also provide jobs, long-term energy independence and an economic boost to Americans.”
This claim as a whole is a stretch, but when further examining the pipeline’s impact on job creation, the fact-twisting is obvious. Supporters of the pipeline say it will create thousands of new jobs. However, they fail to mention that the majority of these jobs, which are in construction, are temporary and would last less than twenty weeks.
As for permanent jobs, some opponents of the pipeline, namely Chuck Schumer, one of the senators from New York, say the pipeline could directly create as few as thirty-five.
Perhaps the most despicable element to this entire debate is the amount of time wasted by Republicans in Congress. The Senate is currently investigating the potential risks and benefits of the pipeline, and has been for a while.
President Obama has said since the beginning of this investigation that he will veto a bill that begins construction of the pipeline before the results are released. Yes, he said he would do this.
A logical person would then wait for the results, wouldn’t they? You must have forgotten who we are talking about here. Republicans in the House of Representatives and in the Senate brought the Keystone-XL Pipeline to a vote, and it passed, since they have the majority. If time were actually money, the Republicans would have wasted a substantial amount, thus blowing their core belief (or what they claim to be their core belief) to smithereens.
Another misconception flaunted by supporters of the pipeline is that it will help American oil companies. However, TransCanada, the company building the pipeline, is obviously not American. The pipeline allows the Canadian company to transport their oil to the Gulf of Mexico for shipping. The pipeline will not transport American oil.
However, it will give Americans easier access to Canadian oil as opposed to oil from less-stable countries, such as Saudi Arabia. The pipeline would create some oil independence from these Middle Eastern nations; however, at the same time it would increase our dependence on Canada.
The Keystone-XL pipeline has an enormous amount of risk while offering little reward. The pipeline will be built on American land taken by the government in exchange for monetary compensation; such a transaction is not optional for the landowners. Perhaps most importantly, any failure in the pipeline will be catastrophic for the areas around it.
The oil, which isn’t even ours, would destroy the environment in the event of a break in the line. Wildlife, plant life, and potentially human life as well will be at risk. The makers of the pipeline shout from the roof-tops telling us how safe it is, but nothing is guaranteed. TransCanada would get the profit, but it will put Americans at risk. For them, the pipeline consists of little risk with endless reward.
Needless to say, the United States is getting the short end of the stick when it comes to the pipeline. Even if it were beneficial, the pipeline has been made entirely political, and is being used as a tool. Rather than waiting for the Senate investigation to be complete, Republican Congress members passed a bill to move ahead with construction of the pipeline, knowing very well this bill would not be signed by the president.
This waste of time is sad, to say the least. This is our time. This is the time they are supposed to spend working for us, but unfortunately our politicians feel that dismantling each other is far more important than working together for us.
