Environment | National | Politics

EPA objects to environmental review for Keystone XL Pipeline

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

The Environmental Protection Agency has rated the environmental impact statement for the controversial Keystone XL Pipeline as "insufficient" due to lack of information about climate change, pipeline safety and alternate routes.

The EPA said the State Department made improvements in its review of the highly contested project. But the agency rated the draft supplemental EIS as EO-2, or "Where the Federal agency violates its own substantive environmental requirements that relate to EPA's areas of jurisdiction or expertise," according to the EPA's policies and procedures.

The EIS was released in March. It was rewritten after TransCanada, a Canadian company, modified the route through Nebraska in order to avoid a major aquifer.

The pipeline route starts in Canada, crosses the border and runs through eight states. Tribes oppose the project due to concerns about water, environment and their treaty lands.

Get the Story:
EPA wants State Dept. to rework analysis of Keystone XL pipeline (The Washington Post 4/23)
State Department Criticized by E.P.A. on Pipeline Report (The New York Times 4/23)
EPA again raises questions about Keystone XL pipeline from Canada (AP 4/22)
Opponents of Keystone to train 60K activists in civil disobedience (The Hill 4/22)

Relevant Documents:
EPA Keystone XL Pipeline Project Letter (April 22, 2013)