[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 183 (Thursday, December 1, 2011)]
[House]
[Pages H8007-H8008]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      KEYSTONE XL PIPELINE SAFETY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Olson) for 5 minutes.

[[Page H8008]]

  Mr. OLSON. Mr. Speaker, at a time when our Nation's economy is 
struggling to recover from our deepest recession in which millions of 
Americans are looking for work, no one would believe that we would 
forgo an opportunity to reduce our reliance on Middle Eastern oil and 
create thousands of American jobs.
  Incredibly, that's exactly what happened after the White House 
announced they would delay decision on approval of the Keystone XL 
pipeline until 2013, after the elections of November 2012. At a time 
when our President faced a difficult choice between opposing powers 
within his base--labor unions and radical environmentalists--he chose 
to punt rather than lead.
  Labor unions support construction of the Keystone XL pipeline because 
they understand this project has been deemed safe and will create 
20,000 direct American jobs and thousands more indirect jobs across our 
Nation as the pipeline is built. But radical environmentalists and 
Hollywood activists vehemently oppose the project. In fact, they 
surrounded the White House in protest of the Keystone XL pipeline, 
claiming that the project is not environmentally safe. While these 
protesters made catchy headlines, their claims about the Keystone XL 
pipeline simply aren't true.
  The Keystone XL project has been studied extensively for over 3 
years, when TransCanada originally filed an application for a 
Presidential permit with the Department of State. The Presidential 
permit review process was conducted by the State Department, the 
Environmental Protection Agency, and many other agencies within the 
Federal Government. After 3 years of comprehensive review and several 
changes to the project to accommodate environmental concerns, the final 
report to the White House incorporated 57 project-specific special 
conditions for the design, construction and operation of the Keystone 
XL pipeline. In simple terms, the Keystone XL pipeline was designed to 
be the safest pipeline the world has ever known.
  Here's the truth why the Keystone XL pipeline promises to be the 
safest pipeline ever. As proposed, the Keystone XL pipeline will be 
monitored 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year with the most 
advanced technologies. It will be buried at a deeper depth than similar 
pipelines to minimize risk. It will utilize multiple leak detection 
methods and failsafe shutoff systems, as well as having an emergency 
response program in place ready to respond if needed.
  Critics of the project further claim that the crude transported by 
the Keystone XL pipeline is highly corrosive ``toxic sludge.'' This is 
a claim that can only come out of Hollywood, with no facts to support 
it. Independent analysis and sound science have determined these oils 
are not corrosive to steel. Canadian oil is already shipped safely 
across the United States via other Canadian pipelines. Good old-
fashioned common sense tells us that no company would try to destroy 
its own interest by spending billions to construct a pipeline system 
that is going to be eaten up by the very products it transports.
  I'll wrap up my comments with the facts about the Keystone XL 
pipeline. This project has been exhaustively studied and revised to 
ensure its safety. Three years of grueling review and detailed analysis 
by multiple Federal Government agencies have concluded that 
construction and use of the Keystone pipeline is safe. In August, our 
Department of State recommended that President Obama approve the 
Keystone XL pipeline.
  Our economy is still teetering on recession. It needs to be 
strengthened; and we need a safe, reliable supply of energy to grow it. 
Canada can provide it. They want to provide it, thereby reducing our 
reliance on Middle Eastern oil and strengthening our national security 
because we have energy security as a result.
  Thousands of new jobs will be created to build this pipeline. Mr. 
Speaker, I urge the President to approve the Keystone XL pipeline now.

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