Keystone XL Pipeline Analysis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

mainstay XL Pipeline Analysis - seek Paper ExampleThe fourth and final phase of the back Pipeline carcass is referred to as the gravestone XL Pipeline. This is by far the most ambitious expansion of the existing railway line system. The Keystone XL Pipeline calls for the installation of over 1000 miles of 36 steel pipe beginning in Hardisty, Canada and conclusion in Steele City, Nebraska. This additional piping will increase the carrying capacity of the entire Keystone Pipeline system to over one million barrels of crude petroleum products per day. While the first three phases of the Keystone Pipeline have has supporters at all levels of government and in the business sector, the Keystone XL section has been met with protest and controversy almost from the first moment is was proposed. Many different groups have taken their spell criticizing the pipeline project. The controversy has ca mapd the Obama administration to suspend the permitting process that is necessary for the project to get started. Through restrictive control, the Obama administration has halted planned construction since March of 2013. The depth and breadth of the protests has caused this regulatory action. The first set of protests against the Keystone XL segment centers on environmental concerns. ... The aquifer is massive but relatively shallow. The importance of keeping this aquifer mediocre and safe from petrochemical pollution cannot be overstated. The primary use for the Ogallala Aquifer is irrigation of crops. The invention of center-pivot irrigation in the 1940s and broad capital punishment of the technology in the 1950s allowed farmers in the Great Plains to dependably raise crops such as corn, soybeans and peanuts that traditionally needed to be grown in more humid climates. This shift in tear use forced out less urine intensive forms of agriculture such as dry land ranching and created an agricultural economy heavily dependent on irrigation for success. Before the adve nt of the Keystone pipeline system, the greatest threat to the Ogallala Aquifer was over pumping. Some vicinitys of northern Texas and Oklahoma discontinued or diminished water extraction from the aquifer because the water table was dropping at and increasing rate. Withdraw from the aquifer greatly exceeded the rate of recharge, sinister all agricultural activity in the region. Farmers were forced to adjust their methods of cropping and pasturing. The water table has since bounced back and is at near normal levels because of these changes made in the 1980s. This example of cooperation between environmentalists and farmers is offered to show that the population of the Great Plains region recognizes that protecting the Ogallala Aquifer is in the best interest of everyone in the entire region. This explains the widespread opposition to the Keystone XL portion of the pipeline. In addition to providing water for irrigation, over 80% of the drinking water for residences is extracted fro m the aquifer. The Keystone XL phase cuts