Washington, DC — Today, the Supreme Court upheld a federal ruling preventing construction on sections of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline without a key permit. The decision means pipeline owner TC Energy (formerly TransCanada) cannot begin construction on the project until 2021 at the earliest.
In the past 24 hours, the US District Court for the District of Columbia also ordered the shutdown of the Dakota Access Pipeline, and Dominion and Duke Energy canceled their six-year, $8 billion bid to build the massive fracked gas Atlantic Coast Pipeline.
In response, Greenpeace USA Climate Campaign Director Janet Redman said:
“While the Trump administration is doing everything it can think of to gut environmental protections and bail out big oil, the Supreme Court’s decision today is an important victory for people fighting to protect their land, water, and our shared climate. No oil pipeline is safe, and TransCanada’s record over the past decade does little to assuage concerns of a spill.
“Three dangerous pipelines delayed within 24 hours should serve as a clear warning to any companies hoping to double down on dirty fossil fuel projects — the future does not belong to you. For more than a decade now, a powerful movement has been taking on reckless oil and gas pipelines and fighting to put Indigenous rights, a just economy, and our environment before oil company profits. It is past time to leave fossil fuels in the ground and begin a just transition to a Green New Deal and 100 percent renewable energy.”
Greenpeace analysis from 2017 estimates that, if completed, the Keystone XL pipeline could expect 59 significant spills over a 50-year lifetime. Between 2010 and 2019, TC Energy saw a total of 20 spills from its US pipeline network, which released 696,276 gallons (16,578 barrels) of oil and hazardous liquids into the environment.
ENDS
Contact: Ryan Schleeter, Senior Communications Specialist, Greenpeace USA: +1 (415) 342-2386, [email protected]
