WASHINGTON, D.C. — Construction on the long-disputed Keystone XL oil pipeline has been halted as U.S. President Joe Biden revoked its permit.
Biden’s Day One plan included revoking a presidential permit for the pipeline that was granted by former President Donald Trump in March 2019.
The 1,700-mile pipeline was planned to carry roughly 800,000 barrels of oil a day from Alberta to the Texas Gulf Coast, passing through Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas and Oklahoma.
The Canadian company says the project has been suspended and over 1,000 jobs will be eliminated in the coming weeks.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says that “we are disappointed but acknowledge the president’s decision to fulfil his election campaign promise on Keystone XL.”
The revoking of the permit was part of one of the executive orders that Biden signed on his first day in office. The order is titled “protecting public health and the environment and restoring science to tackle the climate crisis."
In the order, the administration cited a 2015 review by the state department that determined that approving the pipeline would not serve the U.S. national interest and would undermine U.S. climate leadership by undercutting the nation’s credibility in the fight against climate change.
“That analysis, in addition to concluding that the significance of the proposed pipeline for our energy security and economy is limited, stressed that the United States must prioritize the development of a clean energy economy, which will in turn create good jobs,” the order says.
The administration concluded that leaving the pipeline permit in place wouldn’t be consistent with its economic and climate imperatives.
