Oil pipeline argument focuses on jobs, environment - Houston Chronicle

MIDWEST CITY, Okla. (AP) — Backers of an oil pipeline that would cut across Oklahoma to deliver crude oil from Canada to refineries in Houston want the jobs that would come with the project, but environmental groups say the damage to natural areas isn't worth the benefits the shortcut would bring.

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Supporters of the 1,700-mile pipeline that would carry oil that's being extracted from Canadian oil sands also said at a Friday hearing by the U.S. State Department that it's better to buy crude from a close ally than from unstable sources from overseas. Federal officials also held hearings this past week in Nebraska, South Dakota, Texas, Kansas and Montana. Opponents of the $7 billion project, including Oklahoma Sierra Club Chairman Charles Wesner , say the pipeline is bound to leak and cause environmental problems. The Oklahoman reported that Wesner said oil development in Canada is destroying millions of acres of boreal forest and contributing to global warming.

Oil pipeline argument focuses on jobs, environment - Houston Chronicle