Obama Hints at Rejecting Keystone XL Pipeline
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Environmentalists have been worried about President Obama’s dismal record, and have been particularly concerned that he might approve the infamous Keystone XL tar sands pipeline.
In an interview with the New York Times, however, the president expressed serious doubts about the main justification for the pipeline, its so-called economic benefits, and reaffirmed he would reject the project if it expanded carbon pollution. During the same interview the president observed the project might well raise gasoline prices, and wouldn’t create that many jobs.
Such comments were seen by environmentalists as evidence that Obama, in the wake of last month’s landmark climate change speech, was leaning towards actually rejecting the controversial project.
President Obama has been under growing pressure from a number of sources, e.g. campaigners, party donors, and Democrats in Congress to reject the pipeline, which would expand production from Canada’s tar sands.
He adopted some of their arguments in his comments on Saturday, knocking down pipeline supporters’ claims of a big jobs boost, saying Keystone would register little more than a “blip” on the employment rolls.
“Republicans have said that this would be a big jobs generator. There is no evidence that that’s true,” Obama said in the interview.
“The most realistic estimates are this might create maybe 2,000 jobs during the construction of the pipeline – which might take a year or two – and then after that we’re talking about somewhere between 50 and 100 jobs in a economy of 150 million working people.”
The president, without responding to a question or other prompting from the reporter, then noted that the project would do little to nothing to bring down gas prices, and might in fact raise them. That variable, however, wasn’t his most important consideration, as his decision would be based instead on the pipeline’s effect on climate change.
“I’m going to evaluate this based on whether or not this is going to significantly contribute to carbon in our atmosphere. And there is no doubt that Canada at the source in those tar sands could potentially be doing more to mitigate carbon release.”
The president, however, wasn’t explicit about whether or not he thought the pipeline would accelerate climate change, although this was the second time in a month that he mentioned the environmental effects.
Campaigners have cast the pipeline as a test of Obama’s environmental commitment as tar sands crude is far more carbon intensive than conventional oil.
The State Department ruled last March that the pipeline would not increase greenhouse gas emissions – essentially arguing the tar sands would be mined anyway, but one month later the EPA, in a scorching letter, called for more detailed study, making environmentalist wonder who’s side the agency was on.
The Obama administration is expected to make its decision towards the end of the year.
Many thanks to RawStory for selected contributions.
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[…] Photo credit: Mad Mike’s America […]
Obama is a good man surrounded by lunatics. He really hasn’t a hope in hell has he? – and that is so sad because, given the chance, he could have made a bloody big difference. Politics eh?
He will approve this fucking thing, just wait and see. Hints won’t cut it.