Arkansas Spill Highlights Pipeline Danger

The right-wing Republicans in Congress have once again sold out to corporate interests -- this time to the Big Oil corporations. They are pressuring the president to approve construction of the XL Pipeline, which would cut right through the heart of America (running from the tar sands oil pits of Canada to the Gulf Coast refineries of Texas). They say that pipeline would be a real boon for this country -- creating jobs and lessening the country's dependence on foreign oil. Unfortunately, neither is true.

The numer of jobs the pipeline would create are mostly only temporary. Less than 200 permanent jobs would be created. That's an insignificant amount, considering the amount of jobs this country needs (and the Republicans have blocked in Congress).

And the idea that the pipeline would reduce the dependence on foreign oil is ludicrous. The oil being pumped through the pipeline IS foreign oil (since it is being built solely for the transporting of Canadian oil). In addition, the finished product after it is refined is destined to be shipped to foreign countries (mostly Asia). It will not stay in this country.

And then their is the way land is being procured for that pipeline. The government is backing an obvious misuse of eminent domain laws. Those laws were designed to let the government get property for the public good. But there is no public good in the building of this pipeline. The only entities being helped are giant oil companies -- the Canadian companies who will put their oil in it, and the American companies who will receive that oil to refine it. In other words, private property is being seized through eminent domain for the financial benefit of private corporations -- a clear violation of private property rights (which the Republicans claim to support).

But perhaps the best reason for stopping the pipeline from being built is to protect the environment. The pipeline will cut through the middle of this country -- crossing many thousands of acres of valuable farmland. Every acre of that land is in danger of being polluted with the very dirty Canadian oil. Proponents of the pipeline has shrugged off any danger to the environment, but a pipeline break just this last week in Arkansas (carrying the same kind of Canadian oil) shows this is a real danger.

That pipeline broke (see pictures above) and, before anyone realized it had happened, thousands of gallons of oil polluted the area near Mayflower, Arkansas. The authorities are not letting the general public near the spill, but the pictures above were taken by people living near the spill. And this was just a small pipeline, carrying about 90,000 barrels of crude per day. The XL Pipeline will carry about 800,000 barrels per day -- making a break much more serious than the one in Arkansas.

As the Arkansas break shows, we are not talking about whether a break can occur with the XL Pipeline -- only when and where such a break will occur. That monstrosity should not be built!