Oil pipelines? A wonderful idea, according to President Obama’s own job council:
President Obama’s jobs council called Tuesday for an “all-in approach” to energy policy that includes expanded oil-and-gas drilling as well as expediting energy projects like pipelines.
“[W]e should allow more access to oil, natural gas and coal opportunities on federal lands,” states the year-end report released Tuesday by the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness…
“The Council recognizes the important safety and environmental concerns surrounding these types of projects, but now more than ever, the jobs and economic and energy security benefits of these energy projects require us to tackle the issues head-on and to expeditiously, though cautiously, move forward on projects that can support hundreds of thousands of jobs,” the report says.
But not the Keystone pipeline project apparently:
The Obama administration will announce this afternoon it is rejecting a Canadian firm’s application for a permit to build and operate a massive oil pipeline across the U.S.-Canada border, according to sources who have been briefed on the matter.
However the administration will allow TransCanada to reapply after it develops an alternate route through the sensitive habitat of Nebraska’s Sandhills. Deputy Secretary of State William J. Burns will make the announcement, which comes in response to a congressionally-mandated deadline of Feb. 21 for action on the proposed Keystone pipeline.
That’ll kick the can down the road past the national elections in November, helping to protect the most important job in the world for the man who holds it by ensuring he gets the environmentalist vote. At least until the election is over.
And all those other jobs, tens, perhaps hundreds of thousands that must go waiting?
They’re only for the little people. They’ll just have to wait.
As will the important national security benefits of untrammeled access to petroleum products from a trusted neighbor.
VX, cue Lilly Tomlin.
right up there with destroying GA. Sad part is his supporters will cheer this saving of the planet…and its 5B year history…most all of it without us. wow, we are powerful enough to destroy a planet, while being unable to pass a budget….
Wait ’till Iran tries to close the Strait of Hormuz the speculators wil drive the cost of Oil over $200/barrell
even if the Strait is only closes long enough to do a
little vermin removal…
Notice on the emphasis on the world “reapply.” Even if they jump through the hoop, there’s no guarantee they’ll approve the pipeline. GO AWAY OR I SHALL TAUNT YOU A SECOND TIME, ENGLISH WIPER OF OTHER PEOPLE’S BOTTOMS.
But elections have consequences. Everyone, except the morons at college campuses and dried-up old hippies with COEXIST stickers on their Priuses and Subarus, knew what we were getting when we elected this clown. We knew why the mainstream media covered for him perpetually.
For the past three years since his election, Mr. Obama has actively engaged in practices that have limited the Oil and Gas Industry’s ability to drill for, produce and refine petroleum products. The carefully worded statements by the White House and Mr. Obama are designed to provide the appearance of a change in attitude toward the Oil Industry.
It brings to mind a picture of Lucy holding the football for Charlie Brown to kick. This time Mr. Obama really means it.
Secondary thought: because he said he would create jobs, it shall be campaigned as if he did, despite the facts. Oh, joy.
Jobs is the issue….environmental panty waists need to understand that saving the snail darter is OK, but saving out economy, ability to produce energy and national security from being held hostage to overseas oil prices is a little more important…..
I love our EARTH but I love the people a little bit more….keeping people working is the # 1 issue in this election.
Ironically it is the Republicans, ever more so than the environmentalists or Nebraskans that are happy about this. They believe they can further damage President Obama’s shaky standing in the polls by arguing that his refusal to approve Keystone XL robs Americans of thousands of construction jobs. Other important facts be damned.
Science and politics do not mix well, and big money usually trumps all…. but not this time.
I can only imagine the science you’re talking about is global warming. Sadly, whatever climate effects there may be have not been avoided. There have been alternate plans for a pipeline leading to Canadian west coast, from which the oil will be exported to China.
If that does come to pass, the likely environmental impacts are actually worse than if we implemented the Keystone XL pipeline. Pipelines are the safest, most environmentally friendly way to move oil. Instead of a single pipeline, the oil will move through a pipeline, a Canadian tanker terminal, a tanker across the Pacific, a Chinese tanker terminal, and another pipeline.
So most likely we’ve avoided any possible economic benefit for ourselves, increased the risk of oil spills, and consumed even more energy doing it. Huzzah, we’re ever so virtuous!
From a purely political perspective, the Republicans are right to be happy about this. Their opponents just made a brutally stupid and short-sighted decision.
Here’s a political KISS and new meaning for the iconic “OMG”: Obama MUST Go!
Which part of science triumphed? The “how to hide the decline” part or the “syncophant peer-review” part?
Flit, you’re really slipping when the best you can up with is a quote from a rabid AGW alarmist.
And, no, “Republicans” are not in the slighest bit amused about this, as they’re intelligent enough to know how much we need those jobs, and that oil.
So Obama is making a principled stand against a thousand miles of new pipeline across sandhills that are already the home of thousands of miles of pipelines?
I’ve been listening to local AM radio for the past several months during a long commute. There are two voices to be heard. One is from the pro-energy folks who want the jobs and energy and lower gas prices and independence. The other side tends to set their arguments as a pipeline has a potential to leak, the leak could cause a problem, and that problem would end Life on Earth hence Nothing Should Be Done.
The pro-pipeline folks seem to accept risk but depend upon operators to mitigate it, the anti-pipeline folks seem to not accept risk and assume operators are at best active accomplices.
So I’m driving along and a fellow engineer called in. Explained how through simple things like measuring pressure and volume flow one has a pipeline that would monitor for leaks and shut itself down within two minutes of detection. That these are in place all over the US. That physics dictates what we can do, not hand-waving and hypotheticals and scare-mongering.
The question put to him, and I kid you not, “How do you know? Have you ever built this specific pipeline?”
Now how can you argue with facts and hope to convince such a chowderhead?
– Max
Don’t worry about booting it past the election. Canada is pissed and even now is planning a Western terminus to the Pacific coast of Canada, and will soon be selling all that nasty oil to CHINA. It’s all part of the Obamanation’s master plan, however….destroy our domestic oil production, drive up the price of oil and gasoline to an unholy high price in order to make his favorite ‘renewable fuel’ partners competitive (finally) and make rich all his ‘green’ energy buddies…..and himself, no doubt. All while making this once great, proud country just another Third World Banana Republic at the mercy of his Chinese benefactors.
BTW, ZSSG, did you know that Eric Holder (in a sweet-heart deal)is either (iirc) a) part patent-holder or b) major share-holder in a company that has the patent, to the technology to monitor “smart” electric-meters–the use of which inevitably will become mandatory when energy/electric becomes scarce and rationed?
Not surprising. Speaking of the supposed “smart” electric meters….Progress Energy here in NC offers $25 A YEAR to allow them to install a meter which allows them to shut off your a/c in the summer when it gets too hot out. Pure genius. No one I know has accepted such a great deal.
Flit, with the Obamunists is always politics all the time. Money enters it too. That’s how the Obamunists got there in teh first place, and if he can buy the office this time, he’ll do it again.
Personally, i think the Obummer will be re-elected. It’s been weighed in the balances and found wanting. The elctorate has become lawless and a lawless people will elect lawless politicians like B. Hussein.
Stupid
What the environmentalists don’t understand is the investment was made to extract that oil and so it will be extracted one way or another. The fact that it will be piped to China instead of to the US is pretty sad given how close it is. Instead, we will just export more dollars to our dear friends in the middle east.
Me thinks this is a huge win for Romney.
The political cynic in me wonders when these kind of watershed decisions are announced if it’s really just a ploy on the part of politicians to signal to lobbyists that they need more money. Obviously the right amount from the right lobbyist could alter the politicians (obama’s) position on the subject.
What a great Republic.
A couple of months ago I stumbled across a map of all the existing pipelines in the U.S. Funny thing, that part of Nebraska that is in question, “environmentally”, has a whole bunch of oil and gas pipelines running through it already.
This whole thing is Bovine Scat!
IIRC some 2500 miles to be exact..
PS: Here’s the map: http://www.smalldeadanimals.com/pictures/121711-03.jpg
Thanks. That’s the map.
Oh, and the TOTAL number of miles of pipeline criss-crossing the US, as seen by the map linked below, is, iirc, some 265,000+! Hell, the Earth is only some 25,000mi in circumference at the Equator!
Oh, and the TOTAL number of miles of pipeline criss-crossing the US, as seen by the map linked, is, iirc, some 265,000+! Hell, the Earth is only some 25,000mi in circumference at the Equator!
No it doesn’t, Pixie. Check your geography.
Filterman;
I checked. (Google: keystone pipeline route). It appears to run east from Alberta to above North Dakota, then heads south through North Dakota, (The location of the latest giant oil discovery), South Dakota and the eastern part of Nebraska with a spur across Iowa, (a distance of maybe 450/500 miles), to the southern tip of Illinois where there already exists a large refinery. From that junction, it continues on south to go thorugh eastern Kansas, eastern Oklahoma and finally the gulf coast.
The alturnative route, and somewhat shorter, cuts southeast from Alberta directly to where that spur would be, and then south from there.
Granted, the alturnative route through Montana, Wyoming and the eastern park of Nebraska does cross a large part of the Ogalala Aquifer which could upset the the minds of the “Pristine Everything” folks, but that aquifer is really, really deep where the pipeline isn’t.
So, like I said, “This is Bovine Scat”.
But then, we are living in the age of Bovine Scat.
So how is the oil from the Dakotas getting to refineries/market?
Nice to see the daily load of Basicly Useless Lies and Libel (BULL) delivered to flit via the Master Information Alliance (MIA) has made a post on his cyber patrol assigned Right Wing Nut Job Blog™. Nice to know to squashing of a major job creator by the major jobs killing President is just so he can look strong. No note of the economics, mind you, just more BULL.
Im no lawyer, but Obama has to go to Congress in the not-too-distant future for both an extension of the payroll tax cut and an increase to the debt ceiling. Is there any chance we can attach forced approval to either of those?
VX:
Just like Al Gore being partner in a ‘Carbon Credit’ firm, which got $3B of stimulus money? Sweet deal, if you get your 1/3rd and a Nobel Peace Prize, to put you well into the 1% crowd….and the libs howl about waste and abuse, there’s some and at the Guv’ment owned and operated mortgage firms, where far too many well placed political place holders walked away with millions, stolen from the 99%…sorry, but I had to bring up some inconvenient truths….
And with an invitation I can’t refuse, here, yet again for the uninitiated, is the killer, all-purpose quote from my favorite political philosopher:
“I try to be cynical, but I can’t keep up.”
—-Lilly Tomlin
…and as my favorite philosopher…political or outherwise…the irrepressible Pogo did and in this case might say…
…”we have met the enemy and he is us”. Best
So I guess nobody here cares about the little guy, the Nebraska ranchers?
flit/
Agree about the SandHill/High Plains aquifer and its fragility, but the pipeline could be re-routed (admittedly at some cost and inefficiency) using a safer, more indirect route. But Obama and the Greenies are rejecting the very idea of any pipeline. That’s insane craziness..
I agree with you that rejecting “the very idea of any pipeline” is idiocy.
But as I understand it, the pipeline was not rejected – merely postponed, awaiting more information. Seems reasonable to me. And I hope and do believe it will be re-routed appropriately.
BT
BTW, regarding some other’s comments about me not knowing those ranchers: I indeed used to know some Sand Hills ranchers. My dad did a bit of cattle business with some of those fine and rugged people. Salt of the earth. I also used to chase one of their fine daughters, FWIW.
I rode Nebraska Rt-2 on the way back from Portland. I had been on a HD “Posse Ride”. Followed the BNSF tracks to Grand Island. Lots a really long “unit trains clipping along at 60/65 mph. Good thing it was mostly down hill as the only gas available was 85 octane.
BTW, I think I saw your old girl friend: Married, 5 kids and now a size H. Nice country tho.
Bull. Obama kicked the can down the road until after the election, when he can kill the pipeline outright.
In case you hadn’t noticed, Flit, Teh Won has consistently done his best (worst) to degrade the entire energy infrastructure of this country, from limiting drilling, restricting access to possible fields on Federal land, and driving the cost of energy through the roof.
Soemetimes I think he really is dumb enough to believe the country can be run on 80% solar/wind…
Flit, the Nebraska Rancher has been screwed on this deal and not by the Canadians. First, the aquifer is shallow, under 200′ in many areas across Nebraska and Iowa. Can somebody explain to me how spreading hog crap and bird excrement and using a septic system on the family farm is all A-OK because it cannot possibly hurt the water yet pumping some oil sludge that might soak through the sand like molassas in January is going to End All Life?
Second, ranchers have lots of land and hence lots of land taxes. A pipeline lease means income. No matter the weather, no matter the calves, that lease is an income that doesn’t vary with a poor crop yield. That is known as a fixed marketing asset on the books, it helps to keep the farm liquid when the calves are stillborn.
Finally, a pipeline raises property values because it raises income to that property, which is how we measure things in the rural areas. If I have property with a $5K lease on it, my taxes reflect that lease. The potential of such a lease will raise values, and hence taxes, which I cannot realize without the lease. In short, my land
becomes worth more than I can pay the taxes on because potentially somebody might pay me for it.
Now if anybody were serious about this, there’s a bill in Iowa to get rid of the Forest Preserve. The
Forest Preserve was a law after the Dust Bowl days that states if you had so many trees per acre those acres
were not subject to land tax. The idea was to hold soil and create orchards and such.
Iowa is considering a bill to remove that preserve status. Which means 10 acres at a value of 80K that used to be taxed at nearly nothing is now taxed at the full rate no matter how useful it is for farm or other use.
The Loess Hills are dirt blown in. Want to see them move to Indiana, tax them as usable land.
Which is exactly what Iowa intends to do.
I can think of no tax more regressive than a tax on property that cannot be used to generate an income.
– Max
So, let’s see – taking the oil across a nice flat plain to the refinery is “too dangerous”, but piping it over the Rockies, onto a tanker and shipping it across the Pacific ocean to a dirty refinery in China is better.
Gotcha.
Flit I’m going to call BS on this. You start off with a “brave call” opinion by Bill McKibben, head of an “environmental” organization called 350. I gather their basic point is that CO2 is now at or even above 350 parts per million and that’s a bad thing. Maybe even Climate Armageddon. But whatever–their position is known.
They are hardly a disinterested neutral “science” based group. And they haul out the old Big Oil, Big Money whackadoodle.
The Bamster and his minions have somehow made the Obama administration’s decision to not allow the Keystone Pipeline all the Republican’s fault. Poor widdle Bammy didn’t have time to think things through—notwithstanding the fact that the permitting process and environmental review process has gone on for at least 3 years now–and the Keystone Pipeline has cleared every hurdle but the last one–State Department approval. Of course we know how much “environmental expertise” resides in the striped pants brigade at Foggy Bottom. Probably not as much as say over at the EPA–but then I’m not impressed with them either.
And then you come up with the coup de grace–or final load of buffalo chips and say “What about the little people in Nebraska?” Yes the Keystone Pipeline–like any other pipeline (I’m told that there are already 200,000 miles of existing pipelines in the territory that the Keystone will cross and serve–so what’s another 1,000 miles or so of pipeline?) will run across some one’s property. It may even run through someone’s cattle pasture. By and large oil pipelines get buried–and once the dirt is back over them, I’ll be danged if the cows don’t just go graze right on top of the pipeline. Now the Trans Alaska Pipeline (TAPS) is elevated for much of its 800 mile length. I don’t know if you saw the picture of the Alaskan Brown Bear walking along on top of the pipeline that went around the Internet today–nor do you know about the herds of caribou who like to hang around under the TAPS pipeline. They’ve done so since the pipeline was completed.
The real goal of organizations like Bill McKibben’s “350″ is to entirely stop production of Canadian Tar Sands oil on the proposition that it is evironmentally too dirty. One can agree or disagree with that proposition (I don’t agree). But since they can’t get the Canadian government to do it, they then propose to halt production of Tar Sands oil by blocking the Keystone Pipeline. If it can’t get to market in North America well, by gum the Tar Sands people will just shut down–and the world will be saved.
Sorry Charlie–and Bill McKibben and Flit–it doesn’t work that way. It’s sort of like trying to attack colon cancer by biting the patient on the ankle. It’s annoying to the patient–and maybe satisfying to the ankle biter–but it doesn’t stop the cancer.
Tar Sands oil is now being –and will continue to be–produced. Canada will simply truck it, rail car it, or pipeline it to the British Columbia coast where it will be shipped to China or to Japan.
That doesn’t mean that the Tar Sands oil will be forever barred from the United States. The world crude oil supply is like a big swimming pool with crude oil dumped in to it from many points–and taken out at many other points. Assuming that demand remains relatively steady in the oil consuming countries, adding Tar Sands crude oil to the intake of Japan and China will “back out” some oil from other sources that now goes to Japan and China. That oil will then be available for import to the United States.
All that McKibben, Obama and Flit have done is add the delta of increased transportation costs (ship to West Coast of Canada and then to Japan and China–versus Keystone Pipeline it to Houston refining complex) to the total cost of the world crude oil pool. I might add that there’s much less chance of an environmental disaster–like a tanker wreck or massive oil spill–if you keep the oil on land where it’s easier to clean up. If Canada ships say 5 million barrels of oil a year to China and Japan–instead of sending the same 5 million barrels down to Houston–you’ve put 5 million barrels on the water–that would have stayed on land if you’d used the Keystone Pipeline.
Damn straight Mike. And let’s not forget the carbon footprint of those super-tankers chugging across the Pacific.
I wouldn’t be totally surprised to see some of the Canadian oil moving to the Gulf Coast refineries via rail. It will probably cost significantly more than pipeline (though some RR executives have been talking big about how cheaply they can do it with unit trains) and will have more danger of spills, but if the Keystone is blocked I bet we’ll see considerable traffic for that purpose.
Guess what US railroad is especially well-position to benefit?
Also–a very detailed analysis (which I haven’t read yet) of oil sands transportation alternatives.
Leave it to Flit to parade out the red herrings. Neither Mr. Mckibben, nor Flit, give a rats *ss about anyone in Nebraska. 350.org is dedicated to eliminating fossil fuel — not stopping pipelines. Another source of fossil fuels, not in the hands of people that hate us, is counter to their goals. But he, nor Flit, will ever come out and say that is the reason they oppose Keystone XL — we get the red herrings — the aquifer, the ranchers, do it for the children. All pawns in the game. And actually, they really don’t care about global warming, or fossil fuel consumption. All they care about is US fossil fuel consumption. That’s the reason for carbon limits only on the western world, while China and India have none. That’s the reason for banning US offshore drilling, while offering to finance Brazil’s offshore drilling. That’s the reason they would LIKE to see this oil go to China. It is all about reducing the standard of living in the US. There is a crowd, of which our President is one, who is uncomfortable with our standard of living. They want you to share in their shame, and thier guilt — and they are willing to use any tactic to get you there. This is just one of many.
Scott/
Obama and his minions don’t mind if the Ship of State slowly founders as long as they’re safely cushioned in the Crows Nest so they don’t get their feet wet–calculating it’ll take well beyond their lifetimes…in the meantime too bad about those in 3rd class/stowage down below where it’s taking on water..
VX – I’m going to disagree, slightly. On one level, I think the leftists WANT the ship of state to founder. By that, I take you to mean that our nation is forced to undergo gut wrenching change, and a fundamental altering of our purpose and direction. They WANT constraints on our elements of national power, because they have no faith that power is used for good (as they define good). They WANT a lowered standard of living, because we have lived at the expense of others. They WANT a redistributionist system, because “it is good to spread money around.”. They WANT a diminution of the financial power of the overclass, and don’t really care about using those taxes to balance the budget, instead growing spending to keep the pressure on for even higher taxes into perpetuity.
You have to break eggs to make an omelet. Roght?
“Break eggs to make an omelet”? Where have I heard that before? Who cares as long as it someone else’s eggs.
But where’s the omlet?
“But where’s the omlet?”
All over Obama’s face, VX.
SCOTT/
Perhaps I didn’t make myself clear. I TOTALLY agree with all you say..more later–gotta scoot.
Oddly, Virgil, we all wish O’bozo would be just like the Italian ship Captain… and jump ship! Sadly, that won’t happen and he’ll just continue to sink us all. There are so many fronts that Obummer has failed to act upon and so many more that he has acted clearly against the interest of our Republic.
Flit will throw out his extreme viewpoints… for it’s his silly arguments that cause such ridicule in these precincts, and yet we love to hear him chirp so we may respond. The only boat we wish he were on would be one of those Iranian fishing boats, another one of which our Navy has rescued again today.
Pixie – Don’t you still not know where the Sandhills are?
Hey Pixie, tell this rough riding 5th generation rancher that his plea is as you say, “Bovine Scat”.
If you two were ever to meet, you would either apologize on bended knee, or lose a tooth, I think and hope.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXpg54cirRA
Sandhills hasn’t been an issue since November. TransCanada agreed to move the pipeline route to avoid the area.
Watch this video and maybe you will understand….
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otA7ku2gIQQ&feature=endscreen&NR=1
I love these people, I honor their way of life, I respect their wishes……. and if they do not want a pipeline that could destroy their way of life for big money and oil, I support them.
If you watch this video , maybe some of you heartless people will understand!
So Flit, respectfully, would you be a go on the pipeline if it detoured around the Nebraska sandhills?
Standard Progressive argumentative trick #305a-ii; accuse one’s opponent of being evil or uncaring. Falls into place quite nicely with Obama’s slander that Repubicans want unhealthy air & water.
That video has all the hallmarks of astroturf. Nice campy hat and rancher outfit. Unfortunately for him, his language reveals his motivations, not one as a simple rancher trying to save his land but as a progressive tool.
Saw some “world class” story on msnbc about how “employers cannot find employees” these days which postulated all manner of reasons that were rooted in the evil of the employer but failed to even consider that people on indefinite extended employment benefits might just choose to stay home and party instead.
“Failed to consider?” You have some proof of that? You work for msnbc and know? Ever been unemployed? Ever tried to find a job during a recessions? Know anybody who is suffering? Do you care?
Come back Kid when you have something. Otherwise……
On the upside, this denial will ensure that the oil is moved through Rosario Strait and the Straits of Juan de Fuca, possibly on Chinese tankers but assuredly not US flag vessels.
Let’s see, oil moving on large ships through narrow high-traffic channels where an oil spill will impact sensitive habitat
Or, remote, highly monitored pipeline where any spill will be absorbed by the soil before it reaches the groundwater.
US interstate pipeline map</a
Keystone projected expansion. The dashed line is what was denied, the other is existing or under construction.
Flit – this “rancher” you are fawning over us a gadfly at best, a hypocrite at worst. He is, in reality, an English professor. He almost certainly consumes petroleum products – all of which have some risk of spilling at some point in the supply chain. Obviously, he is OK with that, as long as it isn’t in his backyard. Keystone XL could replace 1/2 of the annual imports of oil from the Middle East or Venezuela . The spill risk is no greater than the spill risk from the tankers delivering that oil – all of which makes up the national supply Mr. Gottschall freely consumes from. Only when that supply is in his backyard, does he become troubled with how it gets there.
So, yes, that is bovine scat. And I would be happy to tell him to his face. We Texans have a good record of kicking the asses of the children of the corn. They hated it so much they quit playing us.
It’s criminal that after three years of “review,” our panderer in chief whined that the GOP left him w/o enough time to evaluate the pipeline proposal. Ridiculous. The company evaluated every conceivable route ALREADY. If he isn’t defeated, we are finished as a 1st world nation. Hello banana republic!
This is the stupidest thing that Pres. Obama will do in office.
I hope.