~ Will Pres. Obama do the right thing?.........NOT!!!
In the Frog Blog's last article about Keystone XL, "Keystone Pipeline Would Be A Disaster," we predicted that President Obama would approve the Keystone XL pipeline. But because the economy performed better than expected, that prediction has yet to materialize.
But last week, the president received a letter from a number of Senate Democrats that urged him to approve the Keystone XL pipeline. Facing pressure from the trade unions and upcoming midterm elections, these Democrats want Mr. Obama to make up his mind by May 31, 2014. And with the tacit approval of Keystone by the State Department – as shown by its final report in January, Mr. Obama's hand is surely being guided if not forced on the matter, click here.
~ Democrats pressure Pres. Obama to approve Keystone pipeline.
On top of all that, the president also has to contend with the strong public support for the project; in the latest poll, 61% of the American people favor building the Keystone XL, click here. Nevertheless, environmentalists are just as determined to get Obama's attention.
However, environmentalists may have already lost half the battle. In March of 2012, President Obama approved the speedy completion of the southern half of the Keystone pipeline and it became operational early this year. It has the capability to transport 700,000 barrels of oil per day from the oilfields in the U.S. Midwest to the refineries on the Gulf coast – for eventual export to countries like China!
~ Environmentalists are furious with Obama.
While Barrack Obama pays lip service to the environmentalists, it is increasingly clear that he places the energy needs of the United States above the viability of the environment and climate. In fact, under his watch, the U.S. has grown into a global fossil-fuel superpower; and according to the International Energy Agency, America is poised to become the world's largest oil and gas producer by 2015, click here.
All this production, however, will not benefit the consumers as the increase in supply will be readily absorbed by the global energy markets. The true beneficiaries here are the Canadian and U.S. oil, natural gas, and pipeline companies. The big loser here is the ecology. And if Mr. Obama approves the northern leg of the Keystone pipeline, the environmental, wildlife, and health costs would be compounded because the heavy crude from the Canadian tar sands is extremely corrosive and toxic. For more information on "dirty oil," click here.
Updated (June 11, 2014): U.S. is now world #1 oil producer.
So, how will the United States become the planet's largest producer of fossil fuel in just a year or so? The answer lies with the revolutionary mining technique called fracking. Simply, tons of transported water mixed with toxic chemicals would be injected into shale rock deep within the Earth; the shale would be literally fractured by extreme hydraulic pressure to release the natural gas and oil.
~ Fracking may be causing earthquakes.
This technique is controversial for a number of reasons, one being the high environmental cost of transporting tons of water to the mining site every day, and another being the possible contamination of groundwater by poisonous chemicals used in the process. Also, when the natural gas and oil are being released by hydraulic fracking, natural methane (a greenhouse gas) tends to escape into the atmosphere, click here. In addition, fracking causes earthquakes. For example, in the State of Oklahoma, incidences involving tremors since fracking began have increased by 4,200% compared to the annual average before 2008.
Yet, it seems that this ostensibly green president fully supports fracking; perhaps the "green" here represents $$$, click here.
[Updated Insert – November 6, 2015: President Obama has denied a permit for the Keystone XL pipeline project (see video below. This should not be a big surprise as he vetoed a bill from Congress in February (read the article from Reuters: "Obama Vetoes Keystone XL Pipeline, Leaving It In Limbo"). We at the Frog Blog are glad to be wrong about President Obama. However, besides Obama's concern for the environment, the two other unexpected factors that might have influenced his decision are: 1) the surprising increase in local shale oil and gas production, making Canadian oil less desirable, and 2) the sudden drop in the world price of oil (around $50 per barrel) makes tar sands oil (produced at around $75 per barrel) untenable. Also, read our recent article, "Oil Crash Could End Fracking & Oil Sands," click here.]
~ The Keystone XL is dead – for now.
UPDATE: Gov't Report: Climate Change Has Arrived
(May 6, 2014) Read our latest update about the Obama Administration's Third National Climate Assessment. Climate Change is here, click here.
UPDATE: Antarctic Glaciers Irreversibly Melting Away
(May 13, 2014) Read our latest update on how the melting of Antarctica may raise sea levels by 13 feet! Click here.
UPDATE: U.S. To Cut CO2 Emissions By 1/3 In 15 Yrs.
(June 4, 2014) Read our latest article on how the Environmental Protection Agency (E.P.A.) will crack down on coal in the U.S. Also, learn about what the People's Republic of China is doing to the world’s environment! Click here.
UPDATE: Nuclear Power Is Best For Climate Change
(August 20, 2015) Read our article on why nuclear power is the only realistic way to cut out all carbon, click here.
For related articles in the Frog Blog:
- Nuclear Power Is Best For Climate Change Click here.
- Mini Ice Age Coming In 2030: Scientists Click here.
- Oil Crash Could End Fracking & Oil Sands Click here.
- U.S. To Cut CO2 Emissions By 1/3 In 15 Yrs. Click here.
- U.N. Climate Report Spells Disaster Click here.
- Arctic Ice Grew By 30% – Global Cooling? Click here.
- Keystone Pipeline Would Be A Disaster Click here.
- Arctic Ice Melts To Lowest Level Ever Click here.
- Rick Perry Calls Global Warming A Hoax Click here.
- Climate-Change Deniers Gain In Congress Click here.
- Palin Blames "Greenies" For BP Oil Spill Click here.
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