Keystone XL
Graphic: Dakotans Concerned
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The proposed Keystone XL Pipeline (also know as the Keystone Gulf Coast Extenstion), is a 1,980 mile pipeline that would transport oil sands crude oil from Hardisty, Alberta and deliver it to existing terminals in Nederland, Texas to serve the Port Arthur, Texas oil market. A 50-mile spur would serve the Houston, Texas oil market.
In Canada the pipeline would extend approximately 327 miles from Hardisty, Alberta southeast through Saskatchewan before entering the United States in Morgan, Montana, where it would continue on southeast for 836 miles through South Dakota and Nebraska. In Steele City, Nebraska the pipeline will connect to the 296-mile long Keystone Pipeline before resuming in Cushing Oklahoma, where it would continue on to its final destination at existing terminals in Nederland, Texas.
Project Status
TransCanada is seeking a Presidential Permit from the U.S. Department of State that would allow the pipeline to cross the U.S. border. The project requires numerous state and local permits in Nebraska, South Dakota, and Montana. The first approval needed is a Certificate of Compliance under the state of Montana’s Major Facility Siting Act. TransCanada expects to begin construction in 2010, with the pipeline coming in service in 2012.
On February 18th, the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission will rule on whether to approve the Keystone XL’s route through South Dakota. Plains Justice explains what’s at stake, and how to send comments, in the video below.
STATUS UPDATE: A state commission voted unanimously on February 18th to approve a construction permit for the crude oil pipeline TransCanada Keystone wants to build across western South Dakota.
More Information
- What tar sands oil means in America’s heartland, NRDC blog post
- South Dakota chapter of the Sierra Club has a tar sands pipelines page
- TransCanada’s Keystone XL Pipeline project website
- South Dakota Tar Sands Pipelines, a blog by Plains Justice.
- TransCanada’s permit applications with Montana Department of Environmental Quality
- TransCanada’s permit applications with the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission
- TransCanada’s State Department Presidential Permit application and EIS documents
- TransCanada’s permit applications for Montana’s Major Facility Siting Act documents
- TransCanada’s permit application with the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality
- Overview of federal permits needed by TransCanada from Sierra Club
