Congress turns on the pressure over Keystone pipeline

• Fifth anniversary of pipeline%27s initial application arrives Thursday
• Pipeline would carry oil from Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast
• Project must be declared in national interest to win approval

WASHINGTON — Supporters of the Keystone XL pipeline will mark a milestone next week when the project reaches the five-year anniversary of the date its application was first submitted.

As that date nears, lawmakers in Congress are gearing up for a debate over the project, with many planning to increase pressure on President Obama to approve it before the end of the year.

"As President Obama continues to delay, Canadian oil production continues to grow," Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., said on the Senate floor Thursday.

Republican Sen. John Hoeven of North Dakota and Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana are pushing a bipartisan resolution declaring the Keystone XL pipeline project in the national interest and calling on Obama to approve it.

The 1,179-mile pipeline would carry oil from Canada's oil sands region to the U.S. Gulf Coast.

"If Congress can find it in the national interest, using the abundance of favorable information that has accumulated over five years on the project, then surely the president can too," Hoeven said.

Thune, a co-sponsor, called on fellow senators to support the measure.

"This pipeline is going to create jobs, it's going to boost investment, it's going to reduce our dependence on Venezuelan oil and it's going to strengthen our relationship with our largest trading partner," he said. "Keystone XL pipeline is clearly in our national interest and I would hope that the United States Senate would go on record to that effect."

A declaration that the pipeline is in the country's national interest is essential for it to be approved. The resolution was offered Thursday as an amendment to an energy bill currently being debated in the Senate.

"As we debate this energy bill that aims to move us toward energy independence, I cannot think of a better way to achieve that goal than by building the Keystone pipeline," Landrieu said. "The time for studying is over. It's time to start building this important pipeline."

A spokesman for Hoeven's office said the senator was still working with leadership on the timing of a vote. The Senate is expected to resume consideration of the energy bill Monday.

Meanwhile, a House subcommittee is planning a hearing on Thursday, the five-year anniversary of the day Keystone's application was submitted in 2008.

"Each day that goes by without Keystone XL's approval, the American economy and American workers lose," said Republican Rep. Lee Terry of Nebraska, chairman of the Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade subcommittee.

Montana Rep. Steve Daines, a Republican, will testify at the hearing. The state's two Democratic senators, Max Baucus and Jon Tester, also are continuing to push for the pipeline, their offices said.

Baucus last month led a group of senators, including Hoeven, Thune and Landrieu, in sending a letter to Obama asking him not to again delay a decision on the pipeline.

"We cannot sit by while excuse after excuse delays jobs in Montana and across the country," Baucus said.

The pipeline has become a flashpoint for environmentalists, who argue that transporting such large amounts of oil across the country puts many areas at risk.

Supporters argue that the $5.3 billion project would create 42,000 jobs across the country and generate much-needed tax revenue in several states.