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Posts Tagged ‘TransCanada Keystone XL’

CEA, Labor, Local Gov’t Officials Turn Out at State Dept. to Lend Support to Keystone Pipeline

Wednesday, July 7th, 2010

CEA’s Whatley on hand to participate in forum, submit comments in support of expanded Canada-to-USA pipeline

WASHINGTON – Is the U.S. government ready to take meaningful steps toward reducing America’s reliance on far-away, unstable energy while leveraging secure, proximate energy sources to create jobs and opportunity here at home? That’s the conversation that took place today at the U.S. State Department, as the agency held another in a series of public forums on whether to grant a final permit in support of the Keystone XL pipeline project, which, upon completion, is slated to deliver 900,000 barrels of affordable Canadian energy a day to consumers in the U.S. who need it.  

“Some might consider the State Department an unlikely setting for a discussion on energy in the United States,” said Michael Whatley, vice president of Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA) and on hand today to provide comments in support of the Keystone project for CEA. “But actually, the Keystone pipeline project is right up State’s alley – especially since the project has the potential to advance key national imperatives related to energy security, affordability and access for millions of Americans. The best part is: It has the potential to do all that without bringing harm to the environment. That’s why CEA supports the project, and that’s why we will continue to work with all stakeholders involved to ensure it happens swiftly and responsibly.”

Once completed, the Keystone XL project will consist of three new pipelines spanning roughly 1,380 miles across the United States from Canada, with the capacity to deliver roughly 900,000 barrels of secure, affordable Canadian energy to American consumers over the long-term. Despite that reach, the actual environmental footprint involved in executing the project is minimal – with the total disturbed area for the project only expected to be 150 square miles. Because the pipeline originates in Canada and crosses into the United States, State Department approval is required.

In addition to CEA, a number of organizations representing consumers, organized labor, and state and local governments appeared at today’s forum to lend their unique perspectives on why the Keystone project is so important to them and their constituents.

“We came here today to show our strong support for the TransCanada Keystone XL pipeline,” said Russ Breckenridge, a legislative representative of the United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industry of the United States and Canada. “Right now the construction industry is currently facing on average 20 percent unemployment, and in some areas our members are facing 40 percent. The TransCanada pipeline will begin to put our members back to work with high-quality jobs, with full benefits and worker protection.”

Added Breckenridge: “Our organization wouldn’t be supporting this project if safety was any concern. … As President Obama has told our organization many times, his number one priority is creating jobs and turning the economy around. The Keystone project will achieve these two goals.” (audio)

Richard Moskowitz, vice president and regulatory affairs counsel for the American Trucking Associations – a CEA member – told the forum that the trucking industry supports the use of renewable and alternative fuels in the transportation sector, but “for the foreseeable future we will be dependent on diesel fuel to deliver virtually 100 percent of the consumer products in the United States.”

Moskowitz also addressed concerns related to the carbon output of fuels expected to be delivered by the pipeline: “The carbon required to transport that oil from Alberta down to Houston is going to be less than the amount of carbon required to transport that oil across Canada, load it on super-tankers, and bring it to China – which is what will happen if we don’t use that oil here in the United States.” (audio)

Additional resources and audio files available from today’s State Dept. event:

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Denial of An LCFS: We’re Not Headed There Fast Enough

Tuesday, July 6th, 2010

June employment numbers were released today, finding that the U.S. economy lost 125,000 jobs last month, while the unemployment rate fell to 9.5 percent.  Standing before an audience at Andrews Air Force base, President Obama responded to the results, saying, “We are headed in the right direction. But…we’re not headed there fast enough for a lot of Americans.”

“Not fast enough” may be considered a vast understatement, if you ask residents in Wisconsin and the 13 other states hoping to improve job numbers on the back of a big transaction. The federal Export-Import bank denied the sale of U.S. coal-mining equipment to a company in India this week, citing concerns over supporting the use of a carbon-intensive fuel source. What was supposed to be a decision made with respect to the health of the environment became a sudden pink slip for thousands of Americans:

“The decision means “throwing 1,000 jobs in the ditch,” Tim Sullivan, chief executive officer of the South Milwaukee, Wis., maker of mining equipment, said in an interview. Bucyrus cited an estimate that the order would create or protect 984 jobs in 13 U.S. states.”

But the Ex-Im bank isn’t the only federal agency that hasn’t gotten the president’s memo on the importance of job creation. The State Department held yet another hearing on whether to grant a routine permit for a critical pipeline, the Keystone XL, seeking to deliver secure energy from the Canadian oil sands to U.S. consumers. If it’s ever approved, the project is slated to create 13,000 jobs in the construction phase alone. However, vocal environmental and native groups have thus far stalled the project, citing land preservation concerns, and even referencing the gulf oil spill as reason not to continue with the project.

We’re only hurting ourselves on this, says Russ Breckenridge, legislative representative for the United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industry in both the U.S. and Canada.  Attending the State Department’s public hearing this past week, Breckenridge was able to give his own employment report, explaining how uplifting the Keystone project would be to his industry:

“Right now the construction industry is currently facing on average 20 percent unemployment, and in some areas our members are facing 40 percent. The TransCanada pipeline will begin to put our members back to work with high-quality jobs, with full benefits and worker protection.”

And in the Houston Chronicle, the vice president of the company planning to build the pipeline explained how the project is a no-brainer:

“The significant benefit is energy security,” said Robert Jones, the TransCanada vice president in charge of the Keystone XL pipeline project. “If we don’t look at Canada as a stable source, then we’ll have to look more at the Middle East.”

So if an energy source from a single country could increase our nation’s energy security and decrease our dependence on unstable regions of the world, what’s the hold up? Nothing related to the pipeline itself, actually – but very much related to the stuff that’s expected to travel through it. It turns out some folks don’t like the Canadian oil sands, wrongly believing they emit more carbon than other petroleum sources.

It’s precisely this type of thinking that’s led some to support what’s known as a Low-Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS). Nevermind the benefits of where we get our energy, an LCFS looks at the carbon content of our everyday fuels and restricts those considered to be too carbon-intensive, which would include the very same fuel to be transported by the Keystone. By denying this fuel source, not only would it not prove to be any better for our environment, but would also force the hands of American consumers to rely on energy rich, yet expensive foreign nations not as friendly as our northern neighbors.

In the addition to paying more at the pump and seeing any number of industries flounder under the extra economic burden of an LCFS, Americans are already losing the very jobs that would be required to finance that burden.  While the jobs report may suggest a slow improvement, we have to ask of our leaders: why would we deny guaranteed job opportunities and a stable energy supply during a time when we could use it the most?

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Help Secure America’s Energy Future! The U.S. Department of State Needs to Hear from You!

Tuesday, June 8th, 2010

As issues related to energy and climate continue to be debated in the nation’s capital, policymakers would do well to keep top-of-mind the importance of reliable, affordable resources from Canada Given the 2.5 million barrels of petroleum that Canada sends our way each and every day, our neighbors to the north clearly play a unique role for the U.S. as our closest, strategic trading partner in the world.  In fact, every barrel of crude oil the United States imports from Canada is one less barrel being purchased from people and places in the world whose interests don’t align with ours.

Since IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA) recently released a report highlighting that Canadian oil sands production is expected to grow from 1.34 million barrels a day to between 3.1 million and 5.7 million barrels a day by 2030  (which could make up as much as 36 percent of United States oil imports by 2030),  it is essential that we have the infrastructure in place to handle those volumes.

To build this needed expansion, Consumer Energy Alliance supports the proposed TransCanada Keystone XL pipeline project and the recently released U.S. State Department’s  Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) – a statement that confirms the delivery of secure, affordable supplies of Canadian energy to American consumers can be done without bringing harm to our environment. But wait: Don’t tell us you missed your chance to weigh-in on the proposed Keystone pipeline with Secretary Clinton? The deadline, after all, was June 1. Or at least it was. Good news is, this week it was announced the deadline will be extended to June 16, 2010 – and CEA is asking for your help to communicate your support for the project to the U.S. State Department by clicking HERE.

Securing stable and affordable energy from our North Aerican allies through projects such as the Keystone Pipeline is in our national interest. While a final decision by the State Department has not been made on the Keystone Pipeline, what we’ve seen so far portends positive news for American consumers. And here’s why:

The project will consist of three new pipelines – one from Morgan, Montana to Steele City, Nebraska; another from Cushing, Oklahoma to Nederland, Texas; and the final one, from Liberty County, Texas to Moore Junction, Texas. The Keystone will initially carry 700,000 barrels of crude per day, eventually increasing to 900,000 barrels — significantly strengthening America’s energy and economic security, as well as creating thousands of family supporting jobs along the way. In fact, it is projected that during construction, Keystone XL will create more than 13,000 jobs funded with private investment, as well as additional revenue for local governments from the economic activity associated with construction and from pipeline property taxes.

Considering the economic and energy security benefits of Canada’s vital resources, policymakers should continue to expand America’s access to safe, affordable energy supplies to help ensure improved energy security and stable prices for consumers.

However, as CEA’s Michael Whatley recently mentioned at the Center for North American Energy Security’s energy summit, under a Low-Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS), Canada would intentionally be singled out for exclusion. As a result, a nationwide LCFS would shut down projects like the Keystone XL and Alberta Clipper altogether – jeopardizing thousands of jobs and billions in economic activity.

Despite the State Department’s positive draft decision on the proposed Keystone XL pipeline, CEA’s grassroots supporters and affiliates will continue to be active contributors to the ongoing debate about commonsense energy legislation can create jobs and help drive down prices at the pump, and how misguided LCFS proposals threaten our nation’s energy security. Please click HERE make your voice heard on this vital project.

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On a Roll: State Dept. One Step Closer to Expanding US-Canadian Energy Partnership

Monday, April 19th, 2010

 Just as Reuters reported that China is snapping up resources assets across the globe — including a recent deal to buy ConocoPhillips’ stake in the huge Syncrude project in Canada’s oil sands for $4.65 billion – the U.S. State Department released a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) on the proposed TransCanada Keystone XL pipeline project. The State Department’s report concludes that the delivery of secure, affordable supplies of Canadian energy to American consumers would have minimal impacts on the environment.

While a final decision by the State Department has not been made on the Keystone Pipeline, this is positive news for American consumers, and here’s why.

The project will consist of three new pipelines – one from Morgan, Montana to Steele City, Nebraska; another from Cushing, Oklahoma to Nederland, Texas; and the final one, from Liberty County, Texas to Moore Junction, Texas. The Keystone will initially carry 700,000 barrels of crude per day, eventually increasing to 900,000 barrels — significantly strengthening America’s energy and economic security, as well as creating hundreds of high-paying, family supporting jobs along the way.

Last year, the U.S. imported 1.5 million barrels of oil a day derived from the Canadian oil sands. Projects like the Keystone XL present the potential to increase North American energy access for U.S. consumers to 4.3 million barrels a day over the next two decades – additional energy that we will no longer be forced to buy from far unstable, unfriendly OPEC nations.

Considering the economic and energy security benefits of Canada’s vital resources, state and national policymakers should work to expand America’s access to secure and affordable energy supplies to help ensure improved stabilize prices for consumers.

Unfortunately, under a Low-Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS), Canada would intentionally be singled out for exclusion. In fact, a nationwide LCFS could shut down the Keystone XL and Alberta Clipper projects altogether – jeopardizing countless high-wage jobs and billions in economic activity. An LCFS would also be a major blow to U.S. energy security.

Despite the State Department’s positive draft decision on the proposed Keystone XL pipeline, CEA’s nearly 260,000 grassroots supporters and 130 affiliates will continue to be active contributors to the ongoing debate about commonsense energy legislation can create jobs and help drive down prices at the pump, and how misguided LCFS proposals threaten our nation’s energy security.

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