US judge stops construction of Keystone XL pipeline

A federal judge in Montana on Thursday filed an injunction to stop construction of the TransCanada Keystone XL pipeline.

Brian Morris, Montana District Judge, writes a 54-page order dealing with allegations by Aboriginal and environmental groups, alleging that the US State Department had committed several violations by approving the $ 8 billion project 1,900 kilometers.

In August, Morris had decided that the state department was required to "badyze new information relevant to the environmental impact of its decision" to issue a permit for the pipeline last year. .

Stephan Volker, who represented the Indigenous Environmental Network, called the winner order.

"When the Trump administration changed course, it did not respond to these factual findings," Volker said. "Under a number of different laws, the state administration must explain the reasons why it believes it can change a decision when it was made contrary to the actual findings of the past."

Volker said the Keystone XL project violated several environmental laws and pointed out that the Trump administration had not taken into account the collapse of a previous decision by former Secretary of State John Kerry in 2015.

During Barack Obama 's presidency, Kerry felt that the project was not in the public interest, citing climate change issues and alleging that the project would not be the economic engine that would make the project more economical. he had promised.

Volker said the judge's ruling means the project has been set aside and can not go ahead – but the order can be appealed.

Promising or problematic?

Greenpeace Canada climate activist Mike Hudema said the decision was a major setback for TransCanada's Keystone XL project and a great victory for Aboriginal groups and conservationists.

"This should also be a huge warning signal to the Liberal government about the inevitable legal hurdles it will face as it continues to rush and limit Trans Mountain's badessment process," he said. he wrote in a statement. "We can not afford new fossil fuel infrastructure if we want to save the planet."

He added that halving fossil fuel emissions over the next ten years means that work on all new pipelines must be subject to a complete shutdown in order to avoid a " climate catastrophe ".

On the other hand, Dennis McConaghy, a former Calgary-based TransCanada Corporation executive, said the decision was bad news for Canada, but badumed the decision would be reviewed and overturned by a higher court.

"It would be very, very problematic and would put even more pressure on a Trudeau government to build the Trans Mountain pipeline," he said. "Canadians should hope that this case will be vigorously litigated and reversed."

"Not finished" for Aboriginal activist

Dallas Goldtooth has been following the project's twists and turns for years, and the organizer of the Keep It In The Ground campaign for Indigenous Environmental Network said he was troubled by the decision being a "big news".

"We continue to kill him, and he keeps coming back from the dead," said Goldtooth, a Mdewakanton Dakota and Diñe man based in Minnesota.

Goldtooth, one of the plaintiffs represented by Volker, said that if it was necessary, he would show up on a construction site. Judge Morris' decision would be to stand firm and ensure that it is followed.

"This is not over for us, we will continue to move forward," he said.

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