A recent string of oil train derailments has renewed focus on rail safety and boosted support for oil pipelines as a safer mode of transportation, potentially affecting the public’s perception of pipeline projects such as the Keystone XL pipeline, whose southern leg went into service on January 22, 2014 and whose northern leg was the subject of a relatively objective final supplemental Environmental Impact Statement from the Department of State, issued on January 31, 2014.
Continue Reading Rail Transport: A Riskier Proposition
Presidential Permit
Government Inaction: Fate of Keystone XL Remains Political
By Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP on
The State Department recently released the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Keystone XL Pipeline. As a final installment to the project’s review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the FEIS assesses the potential impacts associated with the proposed pipeline and its alternatives.
Continue Reading Government Inaction: Fate of Keystone XL Remains Political
Notice of Availability of Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) on Keystone XL
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TransCanada’s proposed new pipeline construction project to carry tar sands oil from Canada to the US Gulf Coast received considerable scrutiny when initially proposed. Because the new pipeline crosses an international border, it requires a Presidential Permit from the State Department, and that process in turn requires preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) under…
President Obama denies Keystone XL pipeline permit
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President Obama denied the Keystone XL permit application based on a recommendation from the State Department that it did not have enough time to vet alternative pipeline routes before the February 21st approval deadline imposed by Congress in the payroll tax extension legislation. While the current Keystone XL application has been denied, the administration will…
President Obama signs payroll tax cut extension bill that includes 60 day deadline for a decision regarding the Keystone XL pipeline
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On December 23, 2011, President Obama signed the Temporary Payroll Tax Cut Continuation Act of 2011, HR 3765, that temporarily extends the two percentage point payroll tax cut for employees, and also includes a Republican negotiated deadline for the President to either approve the Keystone XL pipeline or determine that the project is not in…
House Subcommittee Hearing regarding Keystone XL Pipeline
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In conjunction with its hearings on “The American Energy Initiative,” the House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Power conducted a hearing entitled, “Expediting the Keystone XL Pipeline: Energy Security and Jobs.” Click here for more information.
House introduces North American Energy Access Act
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Republican Congressman Lee Terry of Nebraska introduced HR 3548. that would, among other things, transfer to the decision to review the Keystone XL project to FERC. In addition, FERC would be required to make a decision approving or denying the project within 30 days based on the Final EIS issued in August of 2011. FERC…
Senate introduces North American Energy Security Act
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Senate Republicans introduced Senate bill 1932 that would, among other things, require the Secretary of State to grant a permit for the Keystone XL Pipeline within 60 days unless the President were to publicly determine that the pipeline is “not in the national interest.” Click here for a copy of the bill.