President Obama’s Speech Addressing Global Warming Gives Keystone the Cold Shoulder

Environment America

WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Obama today announced that “Our national interest will be served only if [the Keystone] project does not significantly exacerbate the carbon pollution problem.” Get Off Oil program director for Environment America, Daniel Gatti, issued this statement in response:

“This is a game changer for the Keystone pipeline. President Obama committed today to let the facts about the impact of the Keystone pipeline on our climate determine whether the administration approves or rejects the project. The facts are clear. Building this pipeline will increase global warming pollution. Thus the Obama Administration should reject the Keystone XL pipeline.
“Every government agency review on the Keystone pipeline to date concluded that the tar sands pipeline will increase global warming emissions. The only disagreement is how much. The State Department, using conservative assumptions, still finds that the Keystone will increase net global warming pollution. The EPA finds that the Keystone would increase net global warming. Even a report by the Canadian Association of Petroleum Refiners finds that building the Keystone and other tar sands pipelines would increase tar sands production by 2.5 million barrels per day by 2030, adding as much as global warming pollution as that from 73 million passenger vehicles a year.
“And, of course the nation’s leading climate scientists also agree. Eighteen top climate scientists recently wrote to President Obama urging him to reject the pipeline.

“The president’s comments on Keystone, coupled with his comprehensive plan that would cut carbon pollution from new and existing power plants, have created a pivotal moment in our fight to protect our families and future generations from the worst impacts of climate change.”