Report concludes limited environmental impact from oil pipeline in western SD and other states

Report assesses impact of South Dakota pipeline

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — A federal report concludes there would be limited impact to the environment if the TransCanada Keystone XL oil pipeline is built and operated according to existing regulations and the company’s written plan.

The buried 36-inch-diameter pipeline across six states would carry crude oil from tar sands near Hardisty, Alberta to refineries in Oklahoma and Texas.

The draft environmental impact statement issued by the U.S. State Department will be subject to a 45-day comment period that includes public meetings in the project area. The State Department is involved because the pipeline crosses the U.S. border and requires a presidential permit.

“While we’re still reviewing the document, altogether we are pleased to see the conclusion reached in the analysis that indicates the project would have limited adverse environmental impacts both during construction and operation,” said Jeff Rauh, project spokesman for TransCanada.

Environmental groups said they would use the comment period to renew their concerns about increased emissions from the refinery process.

“The global warming from this project is staggering,” said Pete Carrels of Aberdeen, regional representative for the Sierra Club. “This one pipeline carries the equivalent of putting 6 million new cars on the road.”

In Washington, Friends of the Earth said the environmental study ignores increased greenhouse gas emissions.

“This pipeline is dirty on all accounts,” said Alex Moore.

The report said the pipeline is the best option available to transport oil from Canada to the Gulf Coast. It said existing or proposed pipelines and conventional land or sea transportation would not have comparable capacity or offer a significant environmental advantage, and that the reliability and safety of the project is expected to be well within industry standards.

“The low probability of large, catastrophic spill events and the routing of the proposed pipeline to avoid most sensitive areas suggest a low probability of impacts to human and natural resources. Nevertheless, the potential for construction and operation-related spills does exist,” the report said.

The project would involve 1,380 miles of new pipeline in Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas and would incorporate part of another TransCanada pipeline under construction across Kansas.

It would have an initial capacity of 700,000 barrels per day, with 200,000 barrels going to a refinery in Cushing, Okla., and the remainder to refineries in Texas. Adding pumping capacity later could boost capacity to 900,000 barrels per day.

On the Net:

The U.S. Department of State report: www.keystonepipeline-xl.state.gov/clientsite/keystonexl.nsf?Open