TransCanada Keystone XL Pipeline – Part 1: Due to the tremendous attention in the media, the controversy associated over the United States approval of the Keystone XL Pipeline project has been the table talk for a long while not only for the people only for the people who live in small towns but also for the highest diplomatic circles in the US and Canada. The pending decision is portrayed as a political litmus test for the Obama administration, pitting environment and climate change against energy security, jobs, and the economy;
TransCanada Keystone XL Pipeline: Potential Impacts – Part 2: The total direct and indirect emissions associated with the proposed Project would contribute to cumulative global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. However, emissions associated with the proposed Project are only one source of relevant GHG emissions. In that way, GHG emissions differ from other impact categories that all GHG emissions of the same magnitude contribute to global climate change equally, regardless of the source or geographic location where they are emitted;
TransCanada Keystone XL Pipeline: Pipeline Safety – Part 3. A recent report, Oil & Gas Pipelines Market Report 2014-2024, clearly stated that pipelines are the most efficient and economic means of transporting oil and gas from where it is extracted to where it will be processed and consumed. Pipelines are increasingly being used to transport oil and gas as it combines efficiency and safety. Increasing demand for energy in regions where production is limited necessitates the need for safe and economic transportation from producers to consumers through pipelines. This supports the growth of the pipelines market, particularly in the Asia Pacific and Africa regions;
TransCanada Keystone XL Pipeline: Environmental Protection – Part 4.Cynthia Giles, Assistant Administrator for Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in her letter on the subject addressed to the US Department of State (The Department), on April 22, 2013, stated that we commend the Department of State’s efforts to estimate the lifecycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with oil sands development and the Proposed Project, to analyze the effect of the Project on Canadian oil sands production and to consider measures to reduce GHG emissions; and
TransCanada XL Pipeline: Alternatives – Part 5. The US Department of State (the Department) prepared the Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS) to assess the potential impacts associated with the proposed Project and its alternatives. The FSEIS takes into consideration over 400,000 comments received during the scoping period and 1.5 million comments received on the Draft Supplemental EIS issued in March 2013.
