Federal Judge Denies Petition To Stop Work On Keystone Pipeline

On October 22, The Associated Press reported that U.S. District Court Judge Brian Morris denied a request by Native American tribes to halt construction of the Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada over worries about spills and damage to cultural sites.

Judge Brian Morris says he had “serious questions” about the legal claims being made by the tribe. A final ruling is pending.

Work on the pipeline from Hardisty, Alberta to Steele City, Nebraska started this spring after years of delays. The Associated Press also noted that more than 1,000 people are working on the $9 billion pipeline, but “work on much of the pipeline itself remains stalled” because in July 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court in upheld a lower court ruling that invalidated a permit needed for the pipeline to cross hundreds of rivers and other water bodies along its route.

According to a website for the pipeline, construction on the project will support nearly 60,000 (42,000 in the United States and 17,000 in Canada) “direct, indirect, and induced employment opportunities generated by the business that will be created supplying goods and services to the project and the project’s workforce.”

The Metals Service Center Institute supports construction of the pipeline.