U.S.-Canada Keystone pipeline leaks, fuels outrage

A 1,661-mile extension of a U.S.-Canadian pipeline carrying a controversial form of heavy crude oil is facing increased scrutiny amid recent leaks that prompted a one-week shutdown.

The State Department, which needs to approve the Keystone XL pipeline extension because it crosses a U.S. border, announced Monday that it will hold six additional public meetings as part of its review process. Since the extension will run from Alberta, Canada, to the Gulf Coast, the hearings will occur in the five states the pipeline crosses: Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas.

The Environmental Protection Agency said Monday, however, that it is still dissatisfied with the State Department's supplemental environmental review, issued in April. "EPA believes additional analysis is necessary to fully respond to our earlier comments and to ensure a full evaluation of the potential impacts of proposed project, and to identify potential means to mitigate those impacts," the agency said in a report.

On Tuesday, opponents including the National Wildlife Federation argued the Keystone extension is not in the national interest and will cause oil price hikes in the Midwest. They criticized the State Department's environmental analysis of the project, arguing it doesn't adequately address the increased greenhouse gas emissions caused by mining tar sands oil or other key issues, notably pipeline safety.

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Two leaks last month in the existing year-old pipeline prompted the U.S. Department of Transportation's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) to demand that the owner -- Calgary-based TransCanada -- take corrective action. The company shut the pipeline May 29 and after making repairs the agency Saturday approved its reopening.

"Almost all of the oil releases over the last 11 months on Keystone have been minor - averaging just five to 10 gallons of oil," Russ Girling, TransCanada's president and chief executive officer, said in a statement. "The vast majority of that oil was confined to our property and in all cases was cleaned up quickly. None of the incidents involved the pipe in the ground - the integrity of Keystone is sound."

The two most recent leaks to the existing 2,143-mile pipeline, which carries crude oil from Alberta to Cushing, Okla., were much larger than the nine earlier ones that Girling described. On May 7 near Millner, N.D., the pipeline spilled about 21,000 gallons of oil and on May 29 in Atchison, Kan., it leaked about 420 gallons.

Environmental groups, noting the extension crosses farmland and the Midwest' s largest aquifer, have cited the spills in rallying opponents. Joining them and affected landowners are faith-based groups, 47 of which sent a letter last week to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton asking her to "respect the intrinsic value of creation, and thus, the environment as well."

Yet the oil industry is urging approval from the State Department, which has said it plans to make a decision by year's end. The American Petroleum Institute, the country's most powerful oil and gas trade group, said the federal response to the Keystone leaks proves there is adequate oversight for a safe extension.

On Capitol Hill, House Republicans have proposed legislation to require President Obama to make a decision on the Keystone XL extension by Nov. 1.