Sen. John Kerry on Thursday pledged to subject the Keystone XL pipeline to a full environmental review process if he is confirmed to head the State Department, though he declined to say whether he would block the project.
"It will not be long before that (review) comes across my desk and at that time I'll make the appropriate judgments about it. But it does require -- we are responsible for the environmental review and there are specific standards that have to be met with respect to that review," Kerry said during his Senate confirmation hearing.
The letter issued Wednesday by 53 senators in favor of the Keystone XL oil sands pipeline can be taken two ways -- neither of which will warm the hearts of opponents of the project.
That the group included nine moderate Democrats means President Barack Obama can claim bipartisan backing if he approves the project. And it means that environmental groups still have yet to convince a majority of the Senate of the link between the project and global warming.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Environmental groups say President Barack Obama's warning about climate change will soon be tested as he decides whether to approve the Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada to the Gulf Coast.
Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman's approval Tuesday of a revised Keystone XL pipeline route through his state won't speed the State Department's review of the project, despite calls for an immediate approval by proponents.
"We don't anticipate being able to conclude our own review before the end of the first quarter," department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters at the department's daily briefing.
"I think we need to let our folks continue to do the work that they're doing. Obviously Nebraska’s just finished, as I said we need to take that work and crunch it into our own work."
Ten Republican governors and Premier Brad Wall of Saskatchewan sent a letter to President Barack Obama, urging him to approve the Keystone XL pipeline project, saying the pipeline is "fundamentally important" to development in both countries, The Hill reports.
A report form the Consumer Energy Alliance said the Keystone XL pipeline would create 5,000 jobs annually in Nebraska, but a report from Oil Change International found that emissions from the project would be much higher than estimates, FuelFix reports.
PRINCE GEORGE, British Columbia (AP) — Progress Energy has awarded a $5 billion natural gas infrastructure project across northern British Columbia to TransCanada Corp., one of North America's largest pipeline companies.
Urging him to make good on his pledge to deal with climate change, a group of more than 70 green groups called on President Obama to end the Keystone XL pipeline in the United States, The Hill reports.
Two protesters from the Tar Sands Blockade were arrested outside TransCanada's Houston office during an demonstration against the company's Keystone XL pipeline project, FuelFix reports.
In a report, Nebraska environmental regulators expressed support for TransCanada's altered route for the Keystone XL pipeline, saying it avoids ecologically-sensitive areas. Gov. Dave Heineman has 30 days to approve the route, Reuters reports.
The planned Cape Wind offshore project in Massachusetts won a $200 million commitment from Denmark's public pension fund, The Wall Street Journal reports.
Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., pledged to push a vote to complete the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste facility in Nevada if Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., moves to limit filibusters, Roll Call reports.
The Army Corps of Engineers said it would not conduct a cumulative environmental review of three coal export terminals or consider overseas climate change impact in its reviews, E&E reports.
Legal experts say U.S. natural gas companies could file lawsuits against the Energy Department to speed decisions on liquefied natural gas exports, Reuters reports.
House Appropriations Committee Democrats criticized Republicans for cutting Energy Department spending on renewable energy by 50 percent, The Hill reports.
A communique released at the close of the G8 summit expresses leaders' concerns over climate change and pledges support for a new international climate change treaty in 2015, Business Green reports.
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee advanced a bill to open parts of Alaska's Tongass National Forest to timber development, KTOO reports.
