U.S. urged to cancel plans for Alberta pipeline over climate fears

BY MIKE DE SOUZA, POSTMEDIA NEWS JULY 21, 2010 5:02 PM COMMENTS (17)

U.S. Ambassador to Canada David Jacobson speaks to the Pacific Northwest Economic Region Conference, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Calgary on Monday, July 19, 2010.

Photograph by: Ted Jacob, Calgary Herald

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is urging the Obama administration to put the brakes on a proposed pipeline linking Alberta's oilsands industry with American refineries because of its potential impact on global warming.

In a newly released letter to the U.S. State Department, EPA officials suggested that, if approved, the $12-billion Keystone XL project, proposed by TransCanada, would bring oil into the country with a much higher environmental footprint than the average crude oil now being refined.

"Alongside the national security benefits of importing crude oil from a stable trading partner, we believe the national security implications of expanding the nation's long-term commitment to a relatively high carbon source of oil should also be considered," wrote EPA assistant administrator for enforcement and compliance Cynthia Giles in the letter dated July 16.

"Accordingly, we estimate that GHG emissions from Canadian oilsands crude would be approximately 82 per cent greater than the average crude refined in the U.S., on a well-to-tank basis."

Giles wrote that the additional pollution from the oilsands production would be equivalent to 27 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions per year or roughly equivalent to seven coal-fired power plants. She also noted that the pipeline would encourage more production in the oilsands industry.

"Based on our review, there is a reasonably close causal relationship between issuing a cross-border permit for the Keystone XL project and increased extraction of oilsands crude in Canada intended to supply that pipeline," Giles wrote. "Not only will this pipeline transport large volumes of oilsands crude for at least 50 years from a known, dedicated source in Canada to refineries in the Gulf Coast, there are no significant current export markets for this crude oil other than the U.S. Accordingly, it is reasonable to conclude that extraction will likely increase if the pipeline is constructed."

The letter suggested that the pipeline be put on hold until the industry demonstrates it can lower its emissions from extraction and production to match other conventional sources of oil.

It also challenged the project proposal's assessment of energy needs, suggesting that it has left out alternative clean energy technologies and measures that could reduce dependence on oil in the future.

"We recommend that this discussion be expanded to include consideration of proposed and potential future changes to fuel economy standards and the potential for more widespread use of fuel-efficient technologies, advanced biofuels and electric vehicles as well as how they may affect demand for crude oil," said the letter.

Travis Davies, a spokesman for the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, questioned whether EPA's estimates included emissions from transportation of fuels from areas such as Venezuela or Mexico to the U.S. refineries. He also noted that EPA's estimates were based on research from 2005 and that the Canadian industry is constantly making improvements to reduce its environmental footprint.

Davies said that the most recent studies suggest that overall life cycle greenhouse gas emissions of fuel from the oilsands are only five to 15 per cent higher than conventional oil.

The critical EPA assessment of the project follows another letter by Henry Waxman, a Democratic congressman who chairs an energy and commerce committee in Washington, who told Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that the pipeline would be a "step in the wrong direction," since it would increase U.S. dependence on the "dirtiest source of transportation fuel" available.

Earlier this week in a speech to a Calgary audience, U.S. Ambassador to Canada David Jacobson also challenged industry to step up efforts to reduce pollution in their operations.

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