Although President Donald Trump granted the permit for the construction of the Keystone XL oil pipeline last week, environmental groups have announced they are not giving up and will continue to fight the project until the end.
Trump’s approval was the first step to completing the pipeline, but it still has to get passed on the state level. The first part of the green groups strategy is to drag this out as long as possible.
Nebraska state officials won’t be making the decision until September at the earliest and environmentalists will be trying to prolong this process, while trying to persuade the officials to block the project.
Then if and when the project gets approved, these groups plan to make the workers’ job as difficult as possible. They will organize protests along the construction site in attempt to hinder and stop construction.
“Our dedication to stop this pipeline isn’t just for the future determination of our lives as human beings but also for the future of all generations of life, and that we stay true to the understandings of protecting mother earth to the fullest degree and do it in a prayerful way,” said Tom Goldtooth, executive director of the Indigenous Environmental Network to reporters on Friday. “We fully expect to stand united and to continue resistance and carry forth the fire of mobilization in the fight we saw against the Dakota Access pipeline to this next project here.”
While environmentalists are more concern about “climate change,” the Trump administration is focusing on America’s economic security.
“The fact is that this $8 billion investment in American energy was delayed for so long, it demonstrates how our government has too often failed its citizens and companies over the past long period of time,” said Trump. “Today we take one more step in putting the jobs, wages and economic security of American citizens first.”
The Nebraska Public Service Commission has just started the long review process of the Keystone’s route in the state. Over 100 stakeholders in Nebraska, including environmental groups, have filed court motions to halt the project. Again, this will lead to delays.
When Obama previously put a halt to the massive pipeline project in 2015, it was almost complete in Dakota. Many are hopeful the the project will finally be complete sooner than later now with Trump’s stamp of approval, but there will be many more approvals to obtain.
“The presidential permit is only one part of a web of federal, state and local permits that must be obtained prior to starting construction. Other federal agencies, such as the Army Corps of Engineers, state regulatory commissions and even local planning boards may have requirements that need to be fulfilled by Keystone prior to construction,” said Fred Jauss, partner at the Dorsey & Whitney law firm and a former attorney for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. “There is a lot of work ahead for TransCanada before crude oil starts to flow from Alberta to the Gulf Coast on Keystone XL.”
Author’s note: These green groups are taking things too far. They are acting like domestic terrorists with their guerilla warfare strategies. At this point, it’s highly unlikely the project will be abandoned, so it’s time to focus their energy elsewhere.
Editor’s note: “Domestic Terrorism” has always been thought of as ultra-right in political philosophy. This is an exampe of ultra-left terror threat. It’s not the first thougha, Black Lives Matter has shown it is capable of terrorist activities.
Maybe its time for a new Homeland Security focus.