Bloomberg
With the news Monday that TransCanada will begin construction on a section of the Keystone XL pipeline and now the news that former President Bill Clinton is coming out in support of building the entire pipeline, it does seem like the pile on to build the pipeline is upon us.
TransCanada's proposed $7 billion Keystone XL pipeline should be built using an alternate route around the environmentally sensitive Sand Hills of Nebraska, former President Bill Clinton said.
“The extra cost of running it is infinitesimal compared to the revenues” the pipeline could produce, Clinton said today at an energy conference in the Washington suburbs. “I think we should embrace it and develop a stakeholder-driven system of high standards for doing the work.”
I can not believe that Bill Clinton does not understand the environmental ramifications that will occur with the building of the pipeline. Building the pipeline will cement our commitment to the use of the dirtiest oil on the planet.
Renowned NASA Climate Scientist, Dr. James Hansen has said that it is game over if we allow the pipeline to be built.
SolveClimate News: You have referred to Keystone XL as the "fuse to the biggest carbon bomb on the planet." What actual effect would it have on the amount of carbon dioxide in the air?
James Hansen: If released all at once, the known tar sands resource is equivalent to 150 parts per million. As is the case with other fossil fuel sources, the amount in the air declines to about 20 percent after 1,000 years. Of course, only a small fraction of the resource is economically recoverable at the moment. But if you decide you are going to continue your addiction and build a big pipeline to Texas, the economically extractable oil will steadily grow over time. Moreover the known resources would grow because there is plenty more to be discovered.
This disaster seems inevitable.