Posts Tagged ‘Oil pipelines’

Environmental Impact Studies: The dirty little secret

Can an oil pipeline safely cross a rainforest? What are the risks? Photo by Christiane Badgley

The controversy surrounding the proposed Canada to Texas Keystone XL pipeline and the pipeline spills in Michigan and Montana have prompted several newspapers and news agencies to look more closely at pipeline safety. Much of the current reporting indicates that authorities ought to be more concerned about the pipelines criss-crossing their states.

Conflict of interest is potentially a huge issue in the oil industry, where industry-friendly and industry-connected companies are big players in the environmental studies and oil spill clean-up businesses. Here’s more on that from the New York Times:

The State Department assigned an important environmental impact study of the proposed Keystone XL pipeline to a company with financial ties to the pipeline operator, flouting the intent of a federal law meant to ensure an impartial environmental analysis of major projects.

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