Earth Equity News

Obama Administration Approves Pipe to Alberta Oil Sands. By Elizabeth Dunbar, AP, August 20, 2009. "The U.S. State Department issued a permit Thursday allowing construction of a pipeline that will bring crude oil to the U.S. from Canada's oil sands, where environmental groups say extraction and refinement methods are contributing to global warming. With the permit in hand, Enbridge Inc. plans to start construction work on the Alberta Clipper pipeline, which will run through Minnesota and the northeastern corner of North Dakota from Superior, Wis., to Hardisty, Alberta. In a statement announcing the permit, the State Department called Canada a 'stable and reliable ally' and said increasing capacity for Canadian crude oil to reach the U.S. will 'advance a number of strategic interests of the United States.' Environmental groups had urged Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to reject the permit, saying extracting and refining crude from Canada's oil sands emits high amounts of greenhouse gases and threatens the water and air. A coalition of environmental and Native American organizations vowed Thursday to challenge the permit in court, expressing disappointment with President Barack Obama's administration."