Appeals Court Throws Out Case Blocking Keystone XL Tar Sands Pipeline, Relying on New Permit Issued by President Trump

SAN FRANCISCO (June 6, 2019) –The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed a legal challenge to the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline, ruling the case was no longer active due to President Trump’s revocation of the permit at the center of the case. In March, Trump issued a new “presidential” permit for Keystone XL, in an effort to spur construction of the pipeline.

Previously, a federal district court in Montana determined the environmental review for the pipeline was incomplete and blocked construction until the government complies with the law. It was widely reported that President Trump took the extraordinary step of issuing a new permit to undermine the Montana court’s decision. Despite these moves, TC Energy (formerly TransCanada), the pipeline’s developer, recently informed investors that it was too late to begin construction of the pipeline in 2019.

The following are reactions to the decision:

“The Keystone XL pipeline is a disaster waiting to happen and we will not stop fighting it, or President Trump’s extraordinary misuse of executive power to disregard the courts and environmental laws. We will explore all available legal avenues to stop this dirty tar sands oil pipeline from ever being built and endangering our communities and climate,” said Jackie Prange, senior attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council.

“Landowners and Tribal Nations in Nebraska, South Dakota and Montana will continue to fight in the courts, despite this decision that ignores our voices and our nation’s environmental laws in favor of the Trump Administration's attempt to fast-track a risky tar sands export pipeline that threatens our land, water and climate. We know this ten-year battle is still far from over, and we’ll continue to stand together against Keystone XL at every opportunity,” said Mark Hefflinger, communications director for Bold Alliance.

"Despite today's ruling, we remain confident that Keystone XL will never be built," said Sierra Club senior attorney Doug Hayes. "This proposed project has been stalled for a decade because it would be all risk and no reward, and despite the Trump administration's efforts, they cannot force this dirty tar sands pipeline on the American people."

“The court is condoning blatant disregard for environmental laws and allowing regulators to put oil company profits over clean waterways and the people and species that rely on them,” said Jared Margolis, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity. “The Trump administration thinks it’s getting away with approving this dangerous project without adequate environmental review, but we’ll keep fighting Keystone XL to protect the people and wildlife in its path and prevent further harm to our climate.”

“Trump’s actions were a clear overreach to help corporate polluters,” said Marcie Keever, legal director at Friends of the Earth. “Today’s decision attempts to foist an unnecessary and dirty project on communities while imperiling our environment. The Keystone XL pipeline is a direct attack on Americans’ right to safe, unpolluted resources.”

“The Keystone XL pipeline would threaten the livelihoods of our farmers and ranchers and endanger drinking water for tens of thousands of Montanans,” said Dena Hoff, a Northern Plains member and Montana farmer. “Despite the Trump administration’s best efforts to upend the rule of law to serve a foreign corporation, we will continue the fight for clean water and the safety of Montanans every step of the way.”