Headlines of the Keystone Pipeline have been in newspapers and online all over the country. Protests and debates about this controversial subject are covering websites. What is this all about? It is about a fight for our economy and the fragile future of our environment. Some people are so passionate about this that they strapped themselves to the fence of the white house and blocked the sidewalks. Many people, including Daryl Hannah the actress, got arrested because they would not listen to police orders. (Claudia Catanneo Feb. 15, 2013)

There is an existing pipeline that spans from Steele City, Nebraska to Cushing, Oklahoma. It is proposed that the pipeline should be extended from Canada to Nebraska and from Oklahoma to Houston, Texas. The tar sands from Canada would be refined in Houston, Texas. “The southern leg of the Keystone XL, which went into normal operation in January 2014, ties into the existing Keystone pipeline that already runs to Canada, bringing up to 700,000 barrels of oil a day to refineries in Texas. At peak capacity, the pipeline will deliver 830,000 barrels of oil per day. While the pipeline is initially carrying U.S. light crude, it is expected to carry more heavy Canadian oil harvested from tar sands over the next year.” (StateImpact 2014) Although the Keystone Pipeline would reduce our dependence on the Middle East, and create new jobs, the potential economic and environmental risks are too high. President Barack Obama has postponed building this pipeline to make sure that it wouldn’t significantly impact the environment. “Allowing the Keystone pipeline to be built requires a finding that doing so would be in our nation’s interest. And our national interest will be served only if this project does not significantly exacerbate the problem of carbon pollution. The net effects of the pipeline’s impact on our climate will be absolutely critical to determining whether this project is allowed to go forward. It’s relevant.” (President Obama June 26, 2013)

There are many effects the keystone pipeline can have on the environment. To separate the bitumen from the sand and tar, much water is needed form rivers and underground water. “It takes three barrels of water to extract each single barrel of oil.” But the water is so polluted it is stored in huge pools and later cyanide and ammonia can be mixed into clean water supplies near the big pools. Why would we want to poison our water supply?
Another big issue is something that impacts environment “Oil sands produce higher greenhouse gas emissions than conventional oil and therefore contribute to global warming and the associated environmental and public health impacts.” (CSIS 2014) According to Friends of the Earth the environment can be significantly impacted by carbon emissions. “Climate-damaging emissions are equal to adding more than 5.6 million new cars to U.S. roads.” Not only does it add to carbon emission, it can spill and cause harm to the environment surrounding it. Spills can be more probable because the sands oils sink and it is harder to clean and more expensive. “TransCanada's first pipeline proves that this threat is real, as it spilled a dozen times in less than a year of operation.” (Friends of The Earth) The acidic consistency of the oils and the heat from the outside air can cause more spills. Another issue of the environment would be that it impacts the forests. To dig up tar sands the trees are dug up and the caribou around the area will suffer to loss of their habitat. Along with the caribou, the pipeline will take over the habitats of the Swift Fox, the Sage Grouse and the burying beetles. (Mel White 2014) The plants and animals are suffering but so are the indigenous people. The communities of indigenous people are being forced off their land and some people have gotten cancer that live in the area near the pipeline in Alberta Canada. “In the lakeside village of Fort Chipewyan, for example, 100 of the town’s 1,200 residents have died from cancer.” (Friends of The Earth)

The keystone pipeline can also have effects on the economy. Some of these issues are immediate and some are in the future. It is said to be that the pipeline will not create very many high paying, high quality or permanent jobs. “Why keep the “job-killing” course, when the alternative-energy path is already out-performing other sectors of the economy. For example, the solar industry continues to be an engine of job growth — creating jobs six times faster than the overall job market.” (Brendan Smith)

On the other hand, the Keystone Pipeline can provide economic and energy security benefits for the United States. TransCanada has to pay taxes to the state that they want to build the pipeline through. The taxes paid to the state are used to build new schools, bridges, and repair old roads. Not only does the state get money, individuals can receive money by working on the pipeline. “The project will provide jobs for welders, mechanics, electricians, pipefitters, laborers, safety coordinators, heavy equipment operators and other workers who rely on large construction projects for their livelihoods.” Also, many other people will benefit from the keystone pipeline being built. The workers will need food and lodging so the surrounding shops and services will gain from this project. (Trans Canada 2014) The pipeline can also create a dependence on a country that is safer for the United States. According to Gene Green the United States should depend more on Canadian oil sources. “As the largest single exporter of oil to the U.S. and a stable energy partner, Canada has and will continue to help reduce our dependence on energy supplies from nations that are hostile to us, such as Venezuela and some countries in the Middle East.” (Gene Green May 21, 2014)

Even though the Pipeline creates many jobs and security of the country, we need to really focus on the future and the horrible impacts it could have on the environment. Would you want to give people jobs but cause others to get cancer? Do you want to focus on obtaining more oil and damaging the environment or putting effort into renewable sources? The Keystone Pipeline will divert the way to a more cleaner and healthier future of the Earth that our children and grandchildren will have to live in.