http://www.cbc.ca/news/indigenous/transcanada-keystone-pipeline-leak-south-dakota-1.4406159
[Another week, another pipeline leak in the headlines. Stand by for
updates in coming days showing the actual spill volume is larger than
the initial figure published by the perpetrator, and that the situation
is completely under control and 'clean-up' operations are already under
way. Pipeline industry business as usual.
video in on-line article]
TransCanada Keystone pipeline leaks 795,000 litres of crude oil in South
Dakota
Pipeline shut down Thursday morning between Alberta and Oklahoma
The Canadian Press
Posted: Nov 16, 2017 5:28 PM ET Last Updated: Nov 17, 2017 4:28 AM ET
TransCanada Corp. said its original Keystone pipeline has leaked an
estimated 795,000 litres of oil in Marshall County, S.D., just days
before Nebraska is set to decide the fate of plans to expand the
pipeline network.
The company said its crews shut down the Keystone pipeline system
Thursday morning between Hardisty, Alta. to Cushing, Okla., and a line
to Patoka, Ill. The line is expected to remain shut while it responds to
the spill.
Brian Walsh, an environmental scientist manager at the South Dakota
Department of Environment and Natural Resources, said the state has sent
a staff member to the site of the leak in a rural area near the border
with North Dakota about 402 kilometres west of Minneapolis.
"Ultimately, the cleanup responsibility lies with TransCanada, and
they'll have to clean it up in compliance with our state regulations,"
Walsh said.
Environmental groups seize on spill
The leak comes as the Nebraska Public Service Commission is set to vote
on the Keystone XL sequel on Nov. 20 to clear the last major regulatory
hurdle for the $8 billion project. Keystone XL would route the pipeline
on a more direct path through Montana and South Dakota to Nebraska,
where it would connect with existing pipelines that feed Texas Gulf
Coast refineries.
American environmental groups seized on the spill as evidence that their
warnings against Keystone XL would come to pass. Among the groups,
350.org, which helped launch national protests against the project in
the U.S.
"This is exactly the kind of disaster we can expect more of if Keystone
XL is approved," said the statement from 350.org executive director May
Boeve. "No matter what TransCanada says, there's no such thing as a safe
fossil fuel pipeline."
Among other concerns, opponents of Keystone XL say the pipeline would
pass through the Sandhills, an ecologically fragile region in Nebraska
of grass-covered sand dunes, and would cross the land of farmers and
ranchers who don't want it.
'TransCanada is making our case for us'
"Just days before the Nebraska Public Service Commissions decides on
whether to approve Keystone XL we get a painful reminder of why no one
wants a pipeline over their water supply," said Greenpeace campaigner
Mike Hudema.
The Sierra Club was also quick to condemn the spill, urging the
commission not to vote for the project.
"We've always said it's not a question of whether a pipeline will spill,
but when, and today TransCanada is making our case for us," said
campaign director Kelly Martin.
Kent Moeckly, a member of conservation and family agriculture group
Dakota Rural Action, who opposed the Keystone pipeline, said he drove to
land he owns near the site of the spill Thursday.
Dwindling demand for oil
"There's a heck of a south wind up here today, and man it just stunk of
crude oil," said Moeckly, whose property is crossed by the pipeline. "A
mile away, but I'll tell you it was like it was next door."
After years of delay, and rejection by Barack Obama, the Keystone XL
project was given the go-ahead by President Donald Trump this year, but
it's still mired in economic and legal problems.
In addition to the regulatory process in Nebraska, it faces dwindling
demand for oil that has already prompted TransCanada to cancel its
biggest Canadian project, Energy East.