Pipeline essay

The Keystone Pipeline has been a major project discussed since 2008, with many executive orders initiated by presidents Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and now Joe Biden. In his first few months as president, Biden announced that he would be officially revoking the plans to move forward with KXL, this would be following the efforts made  by the obama administration in 2015 in order to take action against climate change. For as long as the project has been overseen and forced into political discoussions and decisons. In hindsight, refocusing attention onto other projects besides KXL could actually be the best of both worlds, a solution thats been long awaited. Therefore, President Biden’s decision to veto the Keystone XL pipeline will not only demonstrate the U.S’s action taking a step to a climate change, but will in actuality aid the national economy through the creation of permanent jobs in return. 

Many an article have been written in contention for and against the Keystone Pipeline due to its effects on the environment, specifically Native American land. Articles like Source #1 cite that Keystone XL vowed to have net-zero operations emissions by 2023, as TC Energy “plans to save its $8 billion contract by promising to use renewable energy in pipeline operations” and “hire a union workforce” in order to move ahead with the plan last approved by former President Donald Trump. However, in the same source, quoted environmentalists applaud the new decision, stating that “President-elect Biden is showing courage and empathy to the farmers, ranchers and tribal nations who have dealt with an ongoing threat that disrupted their lives for over a decade.” This is a significant change because throughout North American history, from white government leaders to ordinary citizens, society has long ignored the aboriginal communities whose ancestors had once taken precedence over this land. With destructive legislation like the Trail of Tears forcing aboriginals off their homeland into small, often sparse territory, the government has pushed aside the needs of Native Americans like second-class people. 

Not only would the Keystone Pipeline have run through reservation property occupied by native Americans, but it would have degraded the natural landscape exponentially . Source #5 raises an invaluable question, why should the U.S be forced to choose between saving the planet and creating jobs? Up and coming industries such as solar power and even electric companies focus on renewable energy sources are creating even more jobs than crude oil. The article suggests that these are the fields that can create more high-level careers in fields that will actually aid Joe Biden’s goal to put the U.S. on track to reach “a 100% clean energy economy and net-zero emissions no later than 2050” back in Source #1. Many proponents for the pipeline are concerned with the U.S’s declining economy and rising unemployment, especially in light of the current pandemic

Furthermore, climate change actually already crumbling the economy. Source #5 explains that natural disasters such as hurricanes and droughts are impacting unemployment when businesses are shut down for months at a time and governments accumulating U.S debt with all the infrastructure damages in affects. By not moving the Keystone Pipeline forward, the U.S can allocate its funds elsewhere while preventing it’s already crumbling climate. The Labor Network for Sustainability also mentions that the construction unemployment rate is twice the national average. While some may use this as a reason to provide more construction jobs, the same source proves that actually, “40 percent of U.S oil-industry jobs consist of minimum-wage work at gas stations. Why would the best way to boost the economy be to create more low-paying jobs in a field laying off “4,400 employees” in 2010 alone? This perspective is expanded upon in Source #2, the NY Times, “the Obama administration estimated that Keystone would support 42,000 temporary jobs for two years — about 3,900 of them in construction and the rest through indirect support, like food service — but only 35 permanent jobs.” For this reason exactly, the very basis in support for Keystone XL is unfounded because the limited job change would be unproportionate to the $8 billion allocated in building expenses. 

In conclusion, Joe Biden made the right decision to stop a discussion gone on for too long and making efforts to improve our way as a nation tackling climate change and job creation for the next four years. Not only will stopping the construction of KXL favor Native American communities’ access to clean water, land, and resources, but more energy is provided sustainable practices and hopefully boosting the economy while at it.