On Friday, the Obama administration has delayed the decision on the Keystone XL pipeline. USA Today said that the final decision about the permit issuance of the pipeline could be handed down well after the congressional elections on November 4.
According to the State Department, officials needed more time to go over around 2.5 million public comments about the project and assess the effect of a pending lawsuit filed in Nebraska. The State Department said that the lawsuit might cause financiers of the pipeline to change its route.
Moreover, the White House is also crediting the delay due to the involvement of another country that could cause ramifications in diplomacy.
The White House statement said, "The permit process will conclude once factors that have a significant impact on determining the national interest of the proposed project have been evaluated and appropriately reflected in the decision documents. The Department will give the agencies sufficient time to submit their views."
The delay, which did not indicate a timetable, has caused Republicans and some Democrats to denounce the pipeline's delay. Environmental groups, on the other hand, laud the Obama administration and thought that it is a sign that Keystone XL pipeline might not push through at all.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell had said, "Here's the single greatest shovel-ready project in America - one that could create thousands of jobs right away - but the President simply isn't interested."
Activists have said that the pipeline, although promising economical benefit, could cause ecological damage along the route. The proposed route stretches from the tar sands of Canada to the Gulf Coast.
All Risk, No Reward Coalition representative Rachel Wolf said, "Every day without Keystone XL is a day that we keep high-carbon tar sands in the ground. (The latest postponement) confirms, yet again, that this project is not permit-able. This export pipeline fails the climate test, fails the jobs test, and doesn't even have a legal route."
