[WSMDiscuss] On Turtle Island : Company drops contentious Keystone XL pipeline project / 'Keystone XL Is Dead !' : After 10-Year Battle, Climate Movement Victory Is Complete

[Jai Sen]

Thursday, June 10, 2021

Turtle Island in movement…, The US in movement…, Indigenous Peoples in movement…, Resistance in movement…, Solidarity in movement…, Justice in movement…, Herstory in movement…

[I know that this news is widely in the media in ‘North America’, so this post is for others, elsewhere, who may not yet have seen this news… and for that all-too-rare sense of VICTORY ! :

The Indigenous Environmental Network, a US-based Indigenous advocacy group, also welcomed the news. “After more than 10 years — we have finally defeated an oil and gas giant! Keystone XL is DEAD! We are dancing in our hearts for this victory!” the group tweeted.

“From the Tar Sands to the Gulf — we stood in hand-in-hand to protect the next seven generations of life, the water and our communities. This is not the end – but merely the beginning of further victories. We know this in our hearts.”

Company drops contentious Keystone XL pipeline project

Critics welcome announcement as a ‘victory’ just months after US President Joe Biden revoked a permit for the pipeline

al-Jazeera

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/6/9/company-drops-contentious-keystone-xl-pipeline-project <https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/6/9/company-drops-contentious-keystone-xl-pipeline-project> 

The project faced years of staunch opposition from environmental groups, landowners and Indigenous communities, who argued it threatened their lands and waters and would worsen the climate crisis [File: Nati Harnik/AP Photo]

The company behind a contentious oil pipeline that would have stretched between Canada and the United States has officially abandoned the project, months after US President Joe Biden revoked its permit <https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/1/21/vindication-keystone-critics-welcome-biden-nixing-pipeline>.

In a statement <https://www.tcenergy.com/announcements/2021-06-09-tc-energy-confirms-termination-of-keystone-xl-pipeline-project/> on Wednesday, TC Energy said it had terminated the Keystone XL project “after a comprehensive review of its options” and in consultation with its partner, the government of Alberta, an oil-rich province in western Canada.

‘Vindication’: Keystone critics welcome Biden nixing pipeline <https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/1/21/vindication-keystone-critics-welcome-biden-nixing-pipeline>
The pipeline that could complicate ‘reset’ of US-Canada relations <https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/11/15/keystone-pipeline-could-complicate-reset-of-us-canada-relations>
Alberta leader asks Biden to ‘show respect’, hold Keystone talks <https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/1/18/alberta-leader-asks-biden-to-show-respect-hold-keystone-talks>
“The Company will continue to coordinate with regulators, stakeholders and Indigenous groups to meet its environmental and regulatory commitments and ensure a safe termination of and exit from the Project,” TC Energy said.

Right-wing Alberta Premier Jason Kenney’s government <https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/1/18/alberta-leader-asks-biden-to-show-respect-hold-keystone-talks> invested 1.5 billion Canadian dollars ($1.1bn) in the Keystone project last year, saying the pipeline was necessary to support the provincial economy.

But the project faced years of staunch opposition <https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/1/21/vindication-keystone-critics-welcome-biden-nixing-pipeline> from environmental groups, landowners and Indigenous communities in both Canada and the US, who argued it threatened their lands and waters and would worsen the climate crisis.

In January, just hours after he was inaugurated, Biden fulfilled a campaign promise and revoked the presidential permit for the project issued by former President Donald Trump.

The 1,947km (1,210-mile) Keystone XL pipeline was set to stretch from the Canadian province of Alberta to the US state of Nebraska, and would have shipped 830,000 barrels of oil per day between the two countries.

“This is great news for the Tribes who have been fighting to protect our people and our lands,” Rosebud Sioux Tribe President Rodney M Bordeaux said in a statement about the pipeline’s cancellation on Wednesday. “The treaties and laws guarantee us protections, and we are committed to see that those laws are upheld.”

The Indigenous Environmental Network, a US-based Indigenous advocacy group, also welcomed the news. “After more than 10 years — we have finally defeated an oil and gas giant! Keystone XL is DEAD! We are dancing in our hearts for this victory!” the group tweeted.

“From the Tar Sands to the Gulf — we stood in hand-in-hand to protect the next seven generations of life, the water and our communities. This is not the end – but merely the beginning of further victories. We know this in our hearts.”

“We’re hopeful that the Biden administration will continue to shift this country in the right direction by opposing fossil fuel projects that threaten our climate, our waters and imperiled wildlife. Good riddance to Keystone XL!” said <https://twitter.com/CenterForBioDiv/status/1402743574660321280> Jared Margolis of the Center for Biological Diversity, another US-based group.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government had supported Keystone XL <https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/11/15/keystone-pipeline-could-complicate-reset-of-us-canada-relations>, but Trudeau said in January that he accepted Biden’s decision to cancel the project.

Kenney, the Alberta premier, said in a statement on Wednesday that his government remained “disappointed and frustrated with the circumstances surrounding the Keystone XL project, including the cancellation of the presidential permit for the pipeline’s border crossing”.

“Having said this, Alberta will continue to play an important role in a reliable, affordable North American energy system. We will work with our U.S. partners to ensure that we are able to meet U.S. energy demands through the responsible development and transportation of our resources.”

The statement said the Alberta government is expected to incur a total cost of $1.3bn Canadian dollars ($1.07bn) for the project.


See also :

'Keystone XL Is Dead !' : After 10-Year Battle, Climate Movement Victory Is Complete

"Keystone XL is now the most famous fossil fuel project killed by the climate movement,' said one veteran campaigner, "but it won't be the last."

Jon Queally, staff writer <https://www.commondreams.org/author/jon-queally-staff-writer>, Common Dreams

https://www.commondreams.org/news/2021/06/09/keystone-xl-dead-after-10-year-battle-climate-movement-victory-complete?utm_campaign=Daily%20Newsletter&utm_content=email&utm_medium=Email&utm_source=Daily%20Newsletter&utm_term=AO <https://www.commondreams.org/news/2021/06/09/keystone-xl-dead-after-10-year-battle-climate-movement-victory-complete?utm_campaign=Daily%20Newsletter&utm_content=email&utm_medium=Email&utm_source=Daily%20Newsletter&utm_term=AO>
After more than a decade of grassroots organizing, agitation, and tireless opposition  <https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/here-s-how-we-defeated-keystone-xl-pipeline>by the international climate movement, the final nail was slammed into the Keystone XL's coffin Wednesday afternoon when the company behind the transnational tar sands pipeline officially pulled the plug  <https://www.cnn.com/2021/06/09/energy/keystone-pipeline-canceled/index.html>on its plans.

"This victory is thanks to Indigenous land defenders who fought the Keystone XL pipeline for over a decade." —Clayton Thomas Muller, 350.org

Following consultation with Canadian officials and regulators—including "its partner, the Government of Alberta"—TC Energy confirmed its "termination <https://www.tcenergy.com/announcements/2021-06-09-tc-energy-confirms-termination-of-keystone-xl-pipeline-project/>" of the project in a statement citing the revocation of a federal U.S. permit by President Joe Biden on his first day in office on January 20 as the leading reason.

Climate campaigners, however, were immediate in claiming a final victory after years of struggle against the company and its backers both in Washington, D.C. and Ottawa.

"TC Energy just confirmed what we already knew but it’s a thrilling reality all the same—the Keystone XL pipeline is no more and never will be," said David Turnbull, strategic communications director with Oil Change International (OCI).

"After more than 10 years of organizing we have finally defeated an oil giant, Keystone XL is dead!" declared the Indigenous Environmental Network (IEN) in reaction. "We are dancing in our hearts because of this victory! From Dene territories in Northern Alberta to Indigenous lands along the Gulf of Mexico, we stood hand-in-hand to protect the next seven generations of life, the water and our communities from this dirty tar sands pipeline. And that struggle is vindicated."

IEN said that the win over TC Energy and its supporters was "not the end—but merely the beginning of further victories," and also reminded the world that there are "still frontline Indigenous water protectors like Oscar High Elk who face charges for standing against the Keystone XL pipeline."

Calling the news "yet another huge moment in an historic effort," Turnbull at OCI said that while the Canadian company's press statement failed to admit it, "this project is finally being abandoned thanks to more than a decade of resistance from Indigenous communities, landowners, farmers, ranchers, and climate activists along its route and around the world."

Jared Margolis, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, declared the victory in the drawn-out battle—which largely took place under the Democratic administration of former President Barack Obama—"a landmark moment in the fight against the climate crisis."

"We need to keep moving away from dirty, dangerous pipelines that lock us into an unsustainable future," added Margolis, who said he now hopes President Joe Biden will take this lesson and apply to other polluting fossil projects. "We’re hopeful that the Biden administration will continue to shift this country in the right direction by opposing fossil fuel projects that threaten our climate, our waters and imperiled wildlife," he said. "Good riddance to Keystone XL!”

Jamie Henn and Bill McKibben, both co-founders of 350.org and key architects of the decision to make the Keystone XL pipeline a target and symbol of the global climate movement, also heralded the news.

"When this fight began, people thought Big Oil couldn't be beat." —Bill McKibben, 350.org co-founder

"When this fight began, people thought Big Oil couldn't be beat," said McKibben, who was among those arrested outside the White House in 2011 protesting the pipeline.

"Keystone XL is now the most famous fossil fuel project killed by the climate movement, but it won't be the last," said Henn. "The same coalition that stopped this pipeline is now battling Line 3 and dozens of other fossil fuel projects across the country. Biden did the right thing on KXL, now it's time to go a step further and say no to all new fossil fuel projects everywhere."

Clayton Thomas Muller, another longtime KXL opponent and currently a senior campaigns specialist at 350.org in Canada, said: "This victory is thanks to Indigenous land defenders who fought the Keystone XL pipeline for over a decade. Indigenous-led resistance is critical in the fight against the climate crisis and we need to follow the lead of Indigenous peoples, particularly Indigenous women, who are leading this fight across the continent and around the world. With Keystone XL cancelled, it's time to turn our attention to the Indigenous-led resistance to the Line 3 and the Trans Mountain tar sands pipelines."

McKibben also made the direct connection to KXL and the decision now looming before Biden when it comes to Line 3 in northern Minnesota. "When enough people rise up we're stronger even than the richest fossil fuel companies," he said. "And by the way, the same climate test that ruled out Keystone should do the same for Line 3."

Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.

____________________________

Jai Sen

Independent researcher, editor; Senior Fellow at the School of International Development and Globalisation Studies at the University of Ottawa

jai.sen at cacim.net <mailto:jai.sen at cacim.net> &  <mailto:jsen at uottawa.ca>jsen at uottawa.ca <mailto:jsen at uottawa.ca>
Now based in Ottawa, Canada, on unsurrendered Anishinaabe territory (+1-613-282 2900) and in New Delhi, India (+91-98189 11325)

Check out something new – including for copies of the first two books below, at a discount, and much more : The Movements of Movements <https://movementsofmovements.net/>
Jai Sen, ed, 2017 – The Movements of Movements, Part 1 : What Makes Us Move ?.  New Delhi : OpenWord and Oakland, CA : PM Press.  Ebook and hard copy available at PM Press <http://www.pmpress.org/>; hard copy only also at The Movements of Movements <https://movementsofmovements.net/>
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