By Anonymous, Class of 2019 

For the last few years, Congress has been debating the production of the Keystone Pipeline.  The Keystone Pipeline would be an estimated $8 billion dollar project that would create an oil pipeline across Canada and many Midwestern states.  Those in favor of the construction argue that it would create much needed American jobs and boost the economy by lowering oil prices.  However, this argument is not valid.  Not only would the pipeline be an environmental disaster, it would also have a minuscule effect on the economy.

The role of the Keystone Pipeline is to lower prices of tar sand oil.  The tar sands are much dirtier than crude oil.  It takes two tons of tar sand to produce a single barrel of oil.  Furthermore, the mining process can contaminate the local water supply, making it toxic to drink.  The US government reports that an increase in the tar sands industry will have a negative “…social and economic impact on local communities.” (Oil Shale and Tar Sand Progmatic EIS–Us Goverment n.d.).

The argument in favor of the Pipeline is that it will create American jobs and lower domestic gas prices.  TransCanada, the company spearheading the creation of the Pipeline, has even admitted that this argument stretches the truth.  A TransCanada consultant admitted the pipeline would likely only provide 35 permanent jobs. (Steyer 2015). Furthermore, the Keystone Pipeline would not reduce foreign oil dependency as much of the transported oil will just be sold overseas. (Kohn 2012)  The American citizen will not benefit from the pipeline, but rather, the company would profit from it.

The Keystone Pipeline would be an $8 billion dollar environmental disaster that will not help the American economy in the long term.  Even Fox News agreed with opinions of President Obama on the irrationality of building the pipeline (Kohn 2012).  If Fox News is agreeing with the president it disdains, the project is definitely problematic.  The American people must not rush into an expensive project that will not help them and potentially hurt our future generations.

This article reflects the opinion of one staff writer, not The Minuteman as a whole. To share your opinion, comment below! 

Bibliography:

Kohn, Sally. Six reasons Keystone XL was a bad deal all along. 1 18, 2012. http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012/01/18/six-reasons-keystone-xl-was-bad-deal-all-along/.

Oil Shale and Tar Sand Progmatic EIS–Us Goverment. Tar Sands. http://ostseis.anl.gov/guide/tarsands/.

Steyer, Tom. A Bad Deal: TransCanada Can’t Change the Facts About Keystone XL. 2 5, 2015. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tom-steyer/transcanada-cant-change-facts-about-keystone-xl_b_6626340.html.