Key U.S. lawmaker opposes Canadian oil sands pipeline
Tuesday, July 6, 2010 at 02:37PM 
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A key U.S. lawmaker has called on the government to deny approval to a TransCanada Corp pipeline project designed to transport Canada's oil sands crude to Gulf coast refineries.
House Energy and Commerce committee chairman Henry Waxman urged the State Department to block TransCanada's planned Keystone XL pipeline.
"This pipeline is a multi-billion dollar investment to expand our reliance on the dirtiest source of transportation fuel currently available," Waxman said in a letter to the department.
"I am concerned that the Keystone XL pipeline would be a step in the wrong direction," Waxman added regarding the White House's push to combat climate change.
Canada's oil sands are the largest source of crude outside the Middle East, but development of these reserves requires open pit mines and carbon-spewing processing plants.
The proposed $7 billion pipeline would greatly increase U.S. imports of oil sands crude raising the carbon intensity of the nation's transportation fuels, Waxman said.
Keystone XL would carry 510,000 barrels a day of crude from Hardisty, Alberta to the Gulf Coast refining hub. Construction of the line is expected to be completed in 2013.
The Obama administration has pledged to lower greenhouse gas emissions, but approved a similar pipeline project transporting oil sands by Enbridge Inc last year.
Enbridge's Alberta Clipper line along with the planned Keystone XL and another previously approved pipeline threaten to erase two-thirds of global warming pollution reductions that would be achieved by the administration's higher fuel economy standards in 2020, Waxman said.
Waxman also raised concerns the department is not adequately assessing the climate change impact of the Keystone XL and the decision making process is not transparent enough.
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