OTTAWA - President Obama has put the Keystone XL pipeline on hold, citing concerns over climate change and the problematic route. Green Leader and MP for Saanich-Gulf Islands Elizabeth May commented, "We need to focus on Canadian job creation and stop the growth in bitumen crude production from the oil sands. This means processing existing bitumen here in Canada, not in the US, and investing more into renewables."
Anti-pipeline campaigns are celebrating tonight. "Many citizens on both sides of the border made their feelings well known-they didn't think the pipeline was worth the risk. TransCanada created a lot of the opposition by over-hyping the job creation numbers, using a non-arm's length consultant for the State Department Environmental Assessment, and routing the pipeline
through the Nebraska Sand Hills and too near the Ogallala aquifer. The President listened to his citizens and made the right decision," said May.
The proposed multi-billion dollar pipeline would have transported bitumen from the oil sands south to refineries in Illinois and Oklahoma and from there to the US Gulf Coast. The pipeline would have crossed the Ogallala Aquifer, water source for many millions in the US, and the ecologically sensitive Sand Hills of Nebraska.
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