President Joe Biden signed an executive order on January 20th to revoke the 2019 Presidential permits for the Keystone XL Pipeline in an effort to combat the ‘climate crisis.’
The Keystone XL is a massive pipeline addition that transports oil from Canada to the heart of the United States.
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen wrote a letter to President Joe Biden asking him to reverse his decision, also warning the President that “the states are reviewing legal options to protect our residence and sovereign interests.”
The letter also received signatures from 13 other Attorneys General from Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, and West Virginia.
Why it matters:
- TC Energy, a Canadian energy company responsible for the Keystone XL Pipelines infrastructure projected to ‘employ more than 11,000 Americans in 2021, creating more than $1.6 billion in gross wages’ and ‘Supporting over 60,000 jobs across North America.’
- If TC Energy’s projection held true, Biden’s halting of the Keystone Pipeline could slash nearly 100,000 jobs.
What they’re saying:
- The Biden Administration promises to create 10 million clean energy and high paying jobs to replace the Keystone XL projects.
- During a January 21st briefing, Press Secretary Jen Psaki commented to the people who are losing their jobs that “the fastest-growing job in the United States before COVID was solar power technician. The same people can do those jobs.”
- Attorney Austin Knudsen argued in the letter that “while you believe this action represents “vigorous climate leadership,” shuttering Keystone XL will only make our allies further dependent on Russian and Middle Eastern oil.”
The fallout:
Research shows that alternative oil transportation of the pipeline can increase greenhouse gas emissions by six times.
It remains to be seen whether the ‘green wave’ of energy jobs that the Democrats promised will ever come to fruition — or help the environment.
