Center for Biological Diversity
Last week, Senator Al Franken, along with ten other Senators, sent a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry, demanding answers on how Enbridge’s Alberta Clipper pipeline expansion plans were reviewed for safety and environmental impacts.
Enbridge has illegally increased the amount of tar sands flowing into the Great Lakes region via two tar sands pipelines, the Alberta Clipper and Line 3, while dodging the necessary and legally-required environmental and safety reviews and permitting obligations. These pipelines would transport tar sands from Alberta, Canada -- the dirtiest source of oil on the planet -- to Midwestern refineries and pipelines to Gulf Coast refineries.
In 2009, following an environmental review process, the State Department approved the construction of the Alberta Clipper Pipeline to carry 450,000 barrels per day (bpd). In 2012, when Enbridge first proposed the expansion of this pipeline to 800,000 bpd, the State Department found that this substantial change would require Enbridge to obtain a new permit, and undergo the requisite environmental and safety review process.
Because the Alberta Clipper pipeline crosses the U.S.-Canada border, it is subject to the same federal review process as the controversial Keystone XL pipeline. But by connecting the Alberta Clipper to a newly installed pipe segment, built in the right-of-way of the aging Line 3, just above and below the border, Enbridge pushed ahead with the expansion and bypassed the legally-required federal review of the project’s environmental and social impacts. This is a blatant and nefarious effort to bypass the law - which isn’t so surprising coming from a company with such a horrendous record as Enbridge. What is surprising to us is that this State Department has allowed this to happen.
In their recent letter to the State Department, Senator Franken and his colleagues highlighted this nefarious action. They made the critical point that President Obama has previously stated he would not approve a permit for a pipeline if it “significantly exacerbates the problem of carbon pollution.” The Department of Energy has warned that the carbon emissions from tar sands is 17-percent higher on a lifecycle basis than traditional U.S. crude. In turning a blind eye to Enbridge’s illegal scheme that routes more of this dirty tar sands across the border, State has given the green light to a project that will significantly impact our environment -- without adhering to the processes put in place to prevent a project like this.
Currently, the State Department’s review of Enbridge’s Alberta Clipper expansion -- as is required by law -- is ongoing. However, at the same time, Enbridge has pushed ahead with its plans to route tar sands from the Alberta Clipper pipeline to Line 3 at the U.S.-Canada border, and then back to the Alberta Clipper pipeline to skirt the law. These 11 Senators have rightfully called on the Secretary to give Enbridge’s tar sands pipeline expansion the review that is required and not allow work-around schemes to substitute for the permitting process.
Sierra Club, along with tribal allies and several other conservation groups, have brought a lawsuit against Enbridge and its illegal plans. Community members and Tribal nations should and must be put above the oil industry and its profits.
We sincerely thank Senator Franken and the ten others who joined him for bringing attention to Enbridge’s illegal tar sands pipeline scheme. We call on the State Department to reverse this illegal scheme and hold this tar sands expansion to the permitting process and environmental review that is required, and to ultimately reject any new tar sands infrastructure. President Obama has set the litmus test for dirty fuels pipeline proposals moving forward, and this plan clearly fails.