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Extracted

Extracted: Daily News Clips 6/14/21

Mark Hefflinger, Bold Alliance (Photo: Bryon Houlgrave/Des Moines Register

By Mark Hefflinger

News Clips June 14, 2021

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PIPELINE NEWS

  • Camp Fire LightAnishinaabe water protectors are calling everyone to the shores of the Mississippi
  • Facebook: RISE CoalitionToday at Firelight camp where we are peacefully asserting our treaty rights by occupying space and holding ceremony, we received this eviction notice from Enbridge
  • BloombergKeystone-Quashing Activists Demand Biden Block Other Pipelines
  • Houston ChronicleComing off Keystone win, protesters turn attention to other pipelines
  • Omaha World-HeraldWith Keystone XL pipeline nixed, Nebraska advocates look to next steps
  • NTVJane Kleeb calls out governor, reaction to pipeline news
  • Canadian PressAlberta finance minister defends $1.3B loss on Keystone XL as ‘calculated decision’
  • Ripon AdvanceMoran, GOP colleagues seek job loss data on dead Keystone XL Pipeline project
  • WV NewsGas and Oil Association of West Virginia disappointed Keystone XL Pipeline project halted
  • E&E NewsKeystone XL is dead, but oil sands are waking up
  • Mlive.comMichigan’s indigenous tribes ramp up efforts to shut down oil pipeline through sacred waters
  • E&E NewsVa. pipeline tests landmark environmental justice ruling
  • E&E NewsTrump rips pro-pipeline unions for backing Biden
  • Politico Morning EnergyPHMSA HITS KINDER WITH $2.2M FINE
  • E&E NewsIndustry opposition threatens pipeline cyber safety bill

WASHINGTON UPDATES

  • Washington PostGore pressed Biden to stick with climate plans as liberals fear White House is softening its agenda

STATE UPDATES

  • Santa Fe New MexicanNew Mexico Republicans request state be exempt from oil, gas lease moratorium
  • Bridge MIMichigan lawmaker wants to block local bans on natural gas

EXTRACTION

OPINION

  • The IndependentThe Keystone XL pipeline is dead. Now Biden has a choice to make
  • Florida Star”: Pipelines A Pipe Dream? Keystone XL Cancellation Is A Story Of Transition
  • NY Daily NewsThe Keystone killers should temper their applause
  • Newton Daily NewsWe don’t need another oil pipeline
  • The Alpena NewsDoing the right thing for Michigan’s families, economy, environment, and energy future

PIPELINE NEWS

Camp Fire Light: Anishinaabe water protectors are calling everyone to the shores of the Mississippi
6/13/21

“Anishinaabe water protectors are calling everyone to the shores of the Mississippi, where they have occupied and camped directly on the proposed drill site for Line 3, holding ceremony and protecting treaty rights as Native and non-Native treaty partners. On Monday, June 7, over 1,000 people from the Treaty People Gathering: Rise, Protect, Stop Line 3 followed Anishinaabe drummers into the valley near the Mississippi headwaters, and hundreds proceeded onto the timber mat easement for Line 3. A sacred fire was lit by elders on June 8, and the camp was named Fire Light Camp – a camp whose message of defending treaty rights, clean water, and a stable climate would shine across Turtle Island. You are invited to come hold space, stand in solidarity, and honor the treaty obligations we all share. The water protectors are now midway through five days of prayer, and have extended an urgent invitation for Native and non-Native allies to join them this weekend. Bring your tent, water, and good spirit to Fire Light Camp and stand in peaceful nonviolent direct action to defend treaty rights. “We’re here to protect our treaties, our sacred water, so we’re at the Mississippi River here where they intend to bore under our precious nibi, the water. We’re here to prevent that from happening.” – Nancy Beaulieu, Co-Founder of RISE Coalition. Fire Light Camp on the Line 3 easement is in the 1855 Treaty Territory, where Anishinaabe people retain their inherent rights to hunt, fish, gather medicines, hold ceremony, and travel. Treaties are our shared history; non-Native treaty partners are invited to uphold their treaty obligations by joining this stand to protect what we all depend on: clean water. GPS coordinates of Fire Light Camp are 47.3400028,-95.2125198 near LaSalle Lake Scientific and Natural Area, on County Rd 40, 1/2 mile east of County Rd 2. Pack light, and pack for hot, variable weather. Meals will be provided but bring your own snacks if you have specific needs.”

Facebook: RISE Coalition: Today at Firelight camp where we are peacefully asserting our treaty rights by occupying space and holding ceremony, we received this eviction notice from Enbridge
6/13/21

“Today at Firelight camp where we are peacefully asserting our treaty rights by occupying space and holding ceremony, we received this eviction notice from Enbridge. RISE Coalition rejects Enbridge’s empty trespass claims, stands on treaty rights. For the past week, Anishinaabe band members have exercised their treaty rights and peacefully occupied a site on the Mississippi headwaters where Enbridge plans to drill its Line 3 pipeline under the river. They have been joined by many non-Indigenous allies who are invited guests. Today, Enbridge issued a letter alleging that a ”certain group of people” is trespassing on its pipeline easement and demanded that we depart the premises. We respectfully decline. We are not a “certain group of people,” but members of various bands of Anishinaabe people with constitutionally guaranteed rights to hunt, fish and gather on lands that we ceded to the United States government. Throughout the multi-year Enbridge Line 3 review process, Enbridge and the state of Minnesota have remained willfully ignorant of our rights established under the treaties of 1837, 1854 and 1855. Our treaty rights are the supreme law of the land, according to Article VI of the U.S. Constitution. These take precedent over any state-approved easement or trespass laws. We dispute many of the assertions in Enbridge’s June 12 letter. Enbridge continues to call this a “replacement project.” It is not. It is a new and larger pipeline along a new route. That’s not a replacement. Enbridge’s letter states that “trespassers claimed to be present on the site to conduct religious ceremonies.” It was not a claim but a fact. The ceremony is ongoing. Our people continue to fast and pray for the protection of the water and the land. Enbridge’s letter said we have “caused significant damage to property and equipment.” This is not true. There was nothing here when we arrived other than a wood plank road that was already carved up by the coming and going of heaving equipment. There was no equipment here to damage.  Enbridge’s letter states that we are “endangering the health and safety of construction workers and the trespassers themselves.” Speaking for ourselves, we do not feel endangered. Nor have we seen any Enbridge workers since we arrived who might be endangered. This is corporate hype to create fear; our presence is peaceful nor are we trespassing.”

Bloomberg: Keystone-Quashing Activists Demand Biden Block Other Pipelines
By Jennifer A Dlouhy and Robert Tuttle, 6/11/21

“Environmentalists emboldened by this week’s defeat of Keystone XL are pressuring President Joe Biden to revoke permits for other oil and gas pipelines, warning their votes depend on the administration blocking fossil fuel infrastructure,” Bloomberg reports. “If you need and want us — as I know the Biden team does — to come out in stronger numbers for 2022, then you have to do right by our community,” Jane Kleeb, the president of Bold Alliance, who spent more than a decade battling TC Energy Corp.’s Keystone XL, said in a call with reporters Friday. “You have to stand up to these big oil and fracked-gas pipelines and say ‘no more.’” Pipelines have been a focal point in the fight against climate change, putting leaders such as Biden and Canada’s Justin Trudeau in a tough spot as they pledge to help cut global carbon dioxide emissions at a Group of Seven summit in the U.K… “Environmentalists and indigenous groups in both countries are putting mounting pressure on the two leaders to stop pipeline developments, with protests in Minnesota against Canadian giant Enbridge Inc.’s expansion of its Line 3 oil-sands conduit turning violent this week. Other projects activists are targeting include Energy Transfer LP’s Dakota Access pipeline, which has been shipping crude from North Dakota’s Bakken oil field to Illinois for four years, and the proposed Byhalia Connection Pipeline, a joint venture between Plains All American Pipeline LP and Valero Energy Corp. to carry oil from Memphis to Mississippi… “Environmentalists want Biden to direct the Army Corps of Engineers to revoke a critical water-crossing permit for Line 3. But doing so could spur a backlash from Canadian politicians, especially following the president’s rejection of Keystone XL in January. Trudeau personally announced the authorization of Line 3 in 2016. Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune said the administration has displayed an “inconsistent commitment” to addressing the issue and now faces a test: “Will these Trump pipelines become Biden pipelines? Will this administration fully meet its responsibility to respond to the climate crisis?”

Houston Chronicle: Coming off Keystone win, protesters turn attention to other pipelines
James Osborne, 6/11/21

“Two days after Transcanada announced it was ending its more than decade-long effort to build the Keystone XL pipeline, protesters are showing no sign of backing down from their campaign to shut down oil pipelines crossing the Canadian border into the United States,” the Houston Chronicle reports. “In a call with reporters Friday, representatives of activist groups including 350.org and the Sierra Club said they working to “cancel” plans by the Canadian energy company Enbridge to expand its Line 3 pipeline and shut down the company’s Line 5 pipeline, amidst growing concern by Michigan state officials about the more than 60-year-old pipeline’s integrity. “How can anyone with a straight face not reject Line 3. It’s exactly the same size and it’s carrying the same stuff (as Keystone XL),” said Bill McKibben, founder of 350.org. “After we’ve seen the highest temperatures  on record on planet earth, the worst Atlantic hurricane season… how can we possibly be engaged in this work?” “…So far the protesters are largely targeting pipelines carrying oil sands, a particularly carbon intensive form of oil production that largely comes from western Canada but they are also turning their sites on gas pipeline projects like Mountain Valley in Virginia and the Pacific Connector in Oregon. But Jane Kleeb, president of the activist group Bold Alliance, said they were opposed to any pipeline authorized under the Trump administration,” because we know they didn’t follow proper procedure.”

Omaha World-Herald: With Keystone XL pipeline nixed, Nebraska advocates look to next steps
Sara Gentzler, 6/12/21

“The corporation behind the Keystone XL pipeline has declared its controversial project canceled, but some who oppose it say their battle isn’t yet history,” according to the Omaha World-Herald. “With uncertainty looming and eminent domain court fights ongoing, pipeline critics are calling for regulatory and legislative action in Nebraska… “Jane Kleeb, founder of leading opposition group Bold Nebraska, is calling for further action in at least three areas: the State Public Service Commission, courts and the State Legislature. The commission, which is made up of five elected commissioners and regulates telecommunications carriers, railroad safety, major oil pipelines and more, approved the pipeline’s route in 2017. The Nebraska Supreme Court ultimately affirmed that approval. That allowed TC Energy to exercise the power of eminent domain, and now advocates want the commission to revoke the approval. There are still more than 60 cases in court, with landowners across nine counties fighting TC Energy over eminent domain, according to Brian Jorde, a lawyer representing landowners. The commission can’t simply rescind its approval on its own, according to commission spokesperson Deb Collins. “The Commission does not have the authority to unilaterally act in regard to a final order that was subsequently subject to appellate review and affirmed by the Nebraska Supreme Court,” Collins wrote in an email. It hasn’t received any “filings, submissions, or requests” regarding the Keystone route from a party in the case, she wrote. Kleeb, who also chairs the Nebraska Democratic Party, said lawyers for Bold Nebraska and the Ponca Tribe, both of which are parties, are sending a letter Monday requesting the commission open the docket… “If the commission ultimately rescinds approval of the route, Jorde said, the dozens of cases he’s involved in should be vacated. But because the lawsuits were validly filed at the time, Jorde said a judge still has to decide how it affects land ownership in each case. Both Kleeb and Jorde independently said the danger is that TC Energy — if it stays true to its word that it won’t build the pipeline — sells its easements to another entity. “It’s a real problem that TransCanada owns all this land across our state and could sell it to anyone they want tomorrow,” Kleeb said… “Kleeb and Jorde would also like to see state law tweaked so that if a pipeline doesn’t have its necessary permits — such as the permit Biden revoked — any land easements a pipeline company acquired would automatically be returned to the landowner. Their argument: A company should not have the power of eminent domain if they cannot do the project for which that power was granted. “I’m not going to rest until we have stronger eminent domain laws and stronger pipeline laws in our state, because I don’t want other families to go through what everybody just went through with Keystone XL,” Kleeb told OWH.

NTV: Jane Kleeb calls out governor, reaction to pipeline news
6/10/21

“The Keystone XL Pipeline project has been officially cancelled,” NTV reports. “…Gov. Pete Ricketts reacted to the announcement, releasing a statement: President Biden’s executive action led to the termination of the Keystone XL pipeline,” said Governor Ricketts. “This is yet another example of the Biden-Harris Administration putting the priorities of radical environmental activists above our national interest. Without Keystone XL, the United States will not only be more dependent on overseas sources of oil, but our state will not enjoy the benefit of the jobs and property tax revenue the project would have brought.”  Nebraska Democratic Party Chairwoman and Bold Nebraska Founder Jane Kleeb joined us Wednesday with her reaction to the news. Kleeb took a stance against Gov. Ricketts, saying: “I will debate you anywhere, anytime on property rights. You’re going around the state lying to Nebraskans about the 30×30 voluntary conservation program, when you had real land grab from a foreign corporation in your backyard. So excuse me with your crocodile-tears press release, it’s time that you actually stand up for property rights and amend the eminent domain laws in our state.”

Canadian Press: Alberta finance minister defends $1.3B loss on Keystone XL as ‘calculated decision’
6/10/21

“Alberta’s finance minister says the province’s $1.3-billion investment of taxpayers’ money in the now-defunct Keystone XL pipeline project was a prudent gamble given the potential payoff in profits and jobs,” according to the Canadian Press. “Finance Minister Travis Toews says it was a “calculated decision,” given the pipeline would have provided $30 billion in royalties over two decades had it gone through. Energy Minister Sonya Savage says the decision meshed with a broader commitment to grow Alberta’s wellspring industry. Both were responding to questions from NDP critic Joe Ceci in the Alberta legislature a day after the project was officially cancelled by TC Energy. Ceci characterized the decision as an irresponsible gamble given that the multibillion-dollar cross-border pipeline was already in jeopardy when Alberta decided to invest in it early last year.”

Ripon Advance: Moran, GOP colleagues seek job loss data on dead Keystone XL Pipeline project
6/11/21

“…Sen. Moran and 10 Republicans, including fellow cosponsors U.S. Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Steve Daines (R-MT), and John Hoeven (R-ND), introduced the Defending Keystone Jobs Act, S. 1983,” the Ripon Advance reports. “The legislation aims to glean job loss data on the now-defunct pipeline project that was expected to provide roughly 11,000 direct high-paying jobs and up to 60,000 indirect and direct jobs, generate tax revenue, increase renewable-energy demand, reduce emissions, and strengthen North American energy independence, according to information provided by Sen. Moran’s office. “Canceling the Keystone XL Pipeline has cost our country thousands of good-paying jobs and made us more dependent on foreign countries to supply our domestic energy needs,” said Sen. Moran. “The Biden administration must reverse this policy, especially in light of its decision to waive sanctions on Russia’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline, and reprioritize the needs of American workers and energy consumers.”

WV News: Gas and Oil Association of West Virginia disappointed Keystone XL Pipeline project halted
6/11/21

“The Gas and Oil Association of West Virginia on Friday expressed disappointment in the loss of the Keystone XL Pipeline,” WV News reports. “Our industry now faces unrealistic federal government policy revisions, which discourage the use of clean-burning and cost-efficient natural gas,” Association Executive Director Charlie Burd said. “Natural gas not only helps our environment as an energy source — it also benefits consumers with lower utility bills while affording the United States the position of power as the world’s largest energy producer and exporter.”

E&E News: Keystone XL is dead, but oil sands are waking up
Benjamin Storrow, 6/11/21

“Climate activists celebrating the death of the Keystone XL pipeline might be in for a disappointment,” E&E News reports. “While the high-profile project is not moving forward, the outlook for Canadian oil sands production is improving. Output of crude bitumen surged to record levels in December. Production has since tapered off slightly, but energy forecasters expect oil sands to scale new heights in 2021 and 2022. At the same time, two other pipeline projects with the potential to ship nearly 1 million barrels a day of oil are moving forward. The result is a split screen. Climate activists are celebrating a major political victory on one side, and companies are gradually scaling up production of Alberta’s emissions-intensive brand of oil are on the other. “Keystone is almost larger than life, and I don’t think it’s fair to say that level of attention or political heat and light can be sustained on enough projects to meaningfully move the needle on climate change,” Andrew Leach, an environmental economist who tracks the oil sands at the University of Alberta, told E&E News… For now, climate activists are moving on to the next project. The Stop Trump Pipelines campaign, an effort featuring 350.org founder Bill McKibben and Indigenous leaders from Minnesota, is holding an event today to call on President Biden to cancel Enbridge’s Line 3 and Line 5 pipelines entering the United States.”

Mlive.com: Michigan’s indigenous tribes ramp up efforts to shut down oil pipeline through sacred waters
By Malachi Barrett, 6/13/21

“Indigenous tribes are asserting their rights under a treaty that predates Michigan’s statehood while pursuing strategies to stop the construction of a new oil pipeline under the Straits of Mackinac,” Mlive.com reports. “Tribes concerned about the destructive potential of an oil spill in the Great Lakes have long been opposed to Enbridge Energy’s Line 5 pipeline, which was built in 1953 without their input. As Enbridge moves forward with plans to replace its 68-year-old pipeline with a tunnel buried under the lakebed, members of 12 federally recognized tribes in Michigan are using newfound political pressure and legal tools to protect their sacred waters… “David Arroyo, tribal chairman of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, said Whitmer’s recognition of treaty rights represented a “paradigm shift” in how U.S. governments view their responsibility to protect the Great Lakes. “We were here for millennia and this is the land of our ancestors,” Arroyo told Mlive.com. “We should have been part of the conversation decades ago.” The Grand Traverse Band was among the signatories of the 1836 Treaty of Washington, which ceded nearly 14 million acres to the United States in exchange for the right to fish, hunt and gather throughout the territory. The tribe is also joined in legal efforts to shut down Line 5. An oil spill would “change the universe” of tribal communities that depend on the Great Lakes for survival and assign significant historic and cultural value to the area, Arroyo said. The Tribal Council formally called for the removal of Line 5 in 2015.”

E&E News: Va. pipeline tests landmark environmental justice ruling
Niina H. Farah, 6/14/21

“A fight over a proposed compressor station in the majority Black Banister District of Virginia’s Pittsylvania County could reveal the impact of a watershed court ruling last year on environmental justice,” E&E News reports.

E&E News: Trump rips pro-pipeline unions for backing Biden
Timothy Cama, 6/11/21

“Former President Trump tore into the unions representing Keystone XL workers today and called for members to take action against their leadership,” E&E News reports.

Politico Morning Energy: PHMSA HITS KINDER WITH $2.2M FINE
Anthony Adragna, 6/11/21

“The Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety Administration is seeking $2.2 million in civil penalties from Kinder Morgan for the leak of 460,000 gallons of gasoline from one of its pipelines in New Mexico in 2018,” Politico Morning Energy reports. “In its filing, PHMSA said the pipeline company , one of the biggest in the country, failed to adequately inspect the stretch of its El Paso-to-Tucson pipeline that eventually developed a 22-inch gash and did not provide the proper tools and information to its control room workers to deal with the leak. Kinder Morgan declined to comment to Politico on whether it would appeal the fine.”

E&E News: Industry opposition threatens pipeline cyber safety bill
Jeremy Dillon and Emma Dumain, 6/11/21

“The House Energy and Commerce Committee approved four bipartisan bills yesterday to bolster the energy sector’s cybersecurity, but opposition from the oil and gas lobby may jeopardize a plan to expand the Department of Energy’s role in pipeline security,” E&E News reports.

WASHINGTON UPDATES

Washington Post: Gore pressed Biden to stick with climate plans as liberals fear White House is softening its agenda
By Jeff Stein, Juliet Eilperin and Tyler Pager, 6/10/21

“A number of Democrats are growing increasingly nervous that the White House could agree to a bipartisan infrastructure deal that scales back key climate-change initiatives, prompting a lobbying push that has included former vice president Al Gore making his case directly to President Biden,” according to the Washington Post. “The private warning last month from the climate hawk and Democratic grandee comes as Biden faces growing unease among liberals — including many administration officials — about his pursuit of Republican support for his next major spending package. Gore called Biden to insist on the inclusion of climate policies after the encouragement of John Podesta, former chair of the liberal Center for American Progress think tank, said people briefed on the call, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss it. Gore also spoke with Biden aide Steve Ricchetti this week about climate and infrastructure, according to a separate person, who also spoke on the condition of anonymity to reveal the private conversation. A White House official said the call between Gore and Richetti ended on a positive note. The former vice president urged Biden to stop the planned Byhalia Pipeline, which would transport crude oil for export through predominantly Black neighborhoods in southwest Memphis and could affect a nearby drinking-water well owned by a local utility.”

STATE UPDATES

Santa Fe New Mexican: New Mexico Republicans request state be exempt from oil, gas lease moratorium
By Daniel J. Chacón, 6/10/21

“Two days after 24 Democratic state legislators sent President Joe Biden a letter expressing their “strong support” for his moratorium on federal oil and gas leases, 39 Republican lawmakers penned a letter of their own Thursday to voice “a different and contrary perspective,” the Santa Fe New Mexican reports. “It is time for us as policymakers, who represent families and business people across our great state, to stand up and provide a reality-based response to the political posturing and grandstanding that was represented by this troubling letter sent by 24 of our legislative colleagues,” members of the GOP wrote in their letter to Biden. Republicans presented a unified front. The letter was signed by every Republican member in the state Senate and House of Representatives, unlike the letter from Democrats, which had the signatures of only 24 lawmakers and no leaders from either chamber. The letter from Democrats expresses a position contrary to that of the state’s chief executive, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, also a Democrat. The governor has asked the president to give New Mexico credit for actions the state already is taking to reduce pollution by the industry — a point raised by Republican lawmakers.”

Bridge MI: Michigan lawmaker wants to block local bans on natural gas
Kelly House, 6/10/21

“Add Michigan to the growing list of states where Republican lawmakers hope to block local governments from enforcing the climate activism mantra to “electrify everything,” Bridge MI reports. “In Michigan, a lawmaker with ties to the oil and gas industry is spearheading the push. Rep. Michele Hoitenga, R-Manton, who until February co-owned an oil and gas industry consulting business with her husband and has received campaign support from industry groups, is lead sponsor of a bill that would prohibit local governments from banning gas appliances in residential buildings. Officials with the Michigan Municipal League said they are unaware of any local government considering such a ban, prompting bill opponents to accuse Hoitenga of needlessly moving to restrict local political control and block climate action.”

EXTRACTION

Canadian Press: Auditor scolds Alberta over mine cleanup fund, how province handles polluted sites
6/11/21

“Alberta’s auditor general is criticizing the government for failing to fix problems pointed out six years ago in a program that’s supposed to guarantee coal and oilsands mines clean up after themselves,” the Canadian Press reports. “Doug Wylie says there’s so much confusion over who’s responsible for the government’s own contaminated sites that there’s no stable funding to ensure that an abandoned coal mine in northern Alberta stays safe… “University of Calgary law professor Martin Olszynski pointed out the government has already eased payments for the oilsands in response to last summer’s oil price collapse. “At essentially every turn, the (program) is designed to favour oilsands operators over taxpayers,” he wrote. “Given the (United Conservative Party’s) track record… there is absolutely no reason to think or hope that they will address this problem meaningfully in the upcoming review.” Regan Boychuk of the Alberta Liabilities Disclosure Project said the problem is simple: the fund needs to collect more money. “Billions of dollars should already be in the bank from these highly profitable companies,” he said. “The only thing that’s going to clean up the oilsands is the revenue from producing that bitumen. We can either save the money for that cleanup while that money is still coming out of the ground, or we can wait until they’re done producing.”

Politico Morning Energy: VERY MODEL OF MEASURING METHANE
Anthony Adragna, 6/11/21

“The International Energy Forum is working with France-based satellite data company Karryos to create a standard for measuring methane emissions from the energy industry ahead of the United Nations climate change conference in November,” Politico Morning Energy reports. “The Methane Measurement Methodology Project will allow countries access to satellite data from the Copernicus constellation of satellites operated by the European Space Agency, with artificial intelligence and advanced algorithms to detect and measure methane emissions, according to the IEF. The group said in a press release the information would help countries “present credible plans for reducing their methane emissions” as part of emissions reductions commitments.”

OPINION

The Independent: The Keystone XL pipeline is dead. Now Biden has a choice to make
Jamie Henn, 6/10/11

“Back in the summer of 2011, when we organized the first sit-ins against the Keystone XL pipeline, the National Journal conducted a poll of its “energy insiders” to get their expert opinion on the project. 93 percent of them said that it would be built within the year,” Jamie Henn writes in The Independent. “How the tides have turned. Late yesterday afternoon, after ten years of protests and delays, TC Energy finally threw in the towel on Keystone XL, giving up on their plans to build the 1,700 mile pipeline from the tar sands of Alberta to the Gulf of Mexico. For climate activists, Indigenous leaders, and farmers and ranchers along the pipeline route, the victory is a long time coming. Many of us have been battling Keystone XL for over a decade now and there were times where it felt like we could be stuck fighting the project for decades more. But something changed over the last 12 months that made this ultimate victory over Keystone XL possible — and that sets us up for many more wins to come. The climate justice movement became a political force to be reckoned with…  “That’s why climate justice activists across the country are now focused on pressuring President Biden to use his executive authority to declare a climate emergency and stop all new fossil fuel projects. And they’re not just waiting around for him to take action: earlier this week, thousands of people joined Indigenous water protectors in Northern Minnesota to protest Line 3, another tar sands pipeline like Keystone XL. The message on their placards was simple: President Biden, it’s time to act. Line 3 is one of dozens of fights that are taking place against fossil fuel projects across the country, from pipelines, to fracking wells, to LNG export terminals. These are the new barricades in the climate battle, the frontlines in the fight for our planet. And they’re the fights that President Biden is going to have to grapple with if he wants to make good on his promise to be a climate leader.”

Florida Star”: Pipelines A Pipe Dream? Keystone XL Cancellation Is A Story Of Transition
6/11/21

“A decision to abandon the Keystone XL oil pipeline leaves Canada with an export problem, analysts said, but it may be a broader sign of an inevitable energy transition and evolution,” the “Florida Star” writes. “…While Keystone XL is dead, several other pipelines potentially face the same fate. An Enbridge pipeline, Line 5, is the target of opposition in Michigan, which is mulling legislative action to shut it down. The Dakota Access pipeline, carrying oil from the Bakken shale field in North Dakota, is a scapegoat for the environmental community. Patrick DeHaan, the lead petroleum analyst for GasBuddy, said from Chicago that, without pipelines, oil suppliers may turn to rail instead, which is not necessarily a safe alternative. In 2013, 47 people were killed in Ontario when a train carrying crude oil derailed and exploded in the town of Lac-Megantic. “I don’t think many people really understand the reliance we have on pipelines for providing the products the market demands,” he said. For the U.S. oil and gas industry, the American Petroleum Institute said it was unfortunate that “political obstructionism” led to the death of the project… “For the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, the decision to scrap the project is an obvious disappointment, not only for energy matters, but for the economy as well. “Canada must continue to develop greater market access for our resources,” producers President and CEO Tim McMillan said in response to emailed questions. The United States relies more on Canadian oil than any other country in the world, and much of that is refined into petroleum products like gasoline. Without that, the United States would be forced to look to overseas producers, undermining energy security.”

NY Daily News: The Keystone killers should temper their applause
Robert Bryce is a visiting fellow at the Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity, the host of the Power Hungry Podcast, and the author of six books, including, most recently, ”A Question of Power: Electricity and the Wealth of Nations.”, 6/12/21

“The climate activists who are dancing on the grave of the canceled Keystone XL pipeline shouldn’t celebrate too much,” Robert Bryce writes in NY Daily News. “Sure, they killed the pipeline. But rural Americans from Maine to Hawaii are mad, too. And just like the climate activists who kiboshed Keystone XL, rural landowners and elected officials are stopping the renewable-energy projects and high-voltage transmission lines that will be needed if we are going to attempt to replace hydrocarbons with intermittent sources like wind and solar. Land-use conflicts are the binding constraint on all energy projects: power plants, coal mines, oil wells, substations, pipelines, renewable projects and high-voltage transmission lines. And therein lies the rub. After the Keystone XL cancellation, a spokesman for 350.org, the climate activist group, declared that “polluters and financiers” must “terminate your fossil fuel projects now.” Contempt for hydrocarbons is common among climate activists. But it ignores the fact that oil, coal and natural gas are critical fuels for our economy and that they are affordable and readily available, which are critical issues for low- and middle-income consumers. It also ignores the staggering number of new transmission lines — which are, in effect, electricity pipelines — that will be needed to convert our economy to renewable electricity. Indeed, if you think putting an oil pipeline five or six feet under the ground is difficult, imagine how hard it will be to build hundreds of thousands of miles of high-voltage transmission lines, supported by thousands of 20-story-tall steel lattice towers. Those wires and towers will have to be rammed through numerous towns, counties and states, as well as through parks, wildlife refuges, and Native American lands. Getting the permits for big transmission projects can take years or even decades.”

Newton Daily News: We don’t need another oil pipeline
Sonali Kolhatkar is the host of “Rising Up With Sonali,” a television and radio show on Free Speech TV and Pacifica stations, 6/9/21

“A decades-old pipeline called Line 3, run by the Canadian company Enbridge, is in the midst of a controversial upgrade. That has sparked fierce resistance from Indigenous communities living along the route,”  Sonali Kolhatkar writes in the Newton Daily News. “Line 3 is being replaced to transport nearly 800,000 barrels of dirty tar sands crude oil per day from Alberta, Canada to Superior, Wisconsin. The pipeline cuts across northern Minnesota, where the Anishinaabe people have treaty rights to hunt, fish, and harvest wild rice and maple syrup. The United States has more pipelines, both existing and planned, than any other nation on earth. Some of these — like the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines — have become major sources of protest. Indigenous leaders are now calling on all Americans to demand an end to the Line 3 project as well. One of them is Nancy Beaulieu, co-founder of the Resilient Indigenous Sisters Engaging (RISE) Coalition, and the northern Minnesota organizer for 350.org… “According to Beaulieu, President Biden could cancel the Line 3 project with “the stroke of a pen” — and she’s perplexed why he hasn’t. Biden has pledged to slash U.S. emissions by 50 percent in less than a decade. Canceling Line 3 would help meet that ambitious goal.”

The Alpena News: Doing the right thing for Michigan’s families, economy, environment, and energy future
State Sen. Jim Stamas, R-Midland, is the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee and represents Michigan’s 36th District, which includes all of Northeast Michigan, 6/14/21

“I am committed to leading and supporting efforts that contribute to making Michigan the best place in the country for families, workers, and job-creators. Northeast Michigan’s economy took a beating from the pandemic, and the business shutdowns that compromised our region’s many small businesses and family incomes. As a recovery begins, we need to be sure the economic crisis is not worsened by an energy crisis the administration is on a path to create. The administration continues to pursue the reckless and irresponsible shutdown of the Line 5 pipeline that is an energy lifeline for Northeast Michigan and our state,” State Sen. Jim Stamas writes in The Alpena News. “If the governor is successful in shutting down Line 5, Michigan stands to lose more than $3 billion in economic activity, $56.8 million in state revenue, and almost 6,700 jobs, according to a recent independent economic analysis commissioned by Consumer Energy Alliance. Line 5 pipeline is important to our state’s energy and economic security.”

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