Hours After Being Sworn In, President Biden Cancels the Keystone XL Pipeline

January 21, 2021

Just a few hours after being sworn in as the 46^th president of the U.S., Joe Biden signed a series of executive actions that as CNN said, “put an exclamation point on his commitment to address climate change.” Among those orders was canceling the Keystone XL pipeline permit.

According to the Keystone XL website, the project would provide more than 11,000 U.S. jobs in 2021 and generate $1.6 billion in gross wages.

The 1,200-mile pipeline has been under construction for years and has already created over 10,000 American union jobs during construction. President Biden’s move yesterday immediately led to 2,000 American workers being laid off.

And so much more will be lost that was already starting to be put into action:

• A $10 million Green Jobs Training Fund for union workers will be no more.
• An indigenous partnership that was generating more than $1 billion in equity ownership opportunities with input into construction and operations is now gone.
• Over $500 million committed for Indigenous suppliers and employment opportunities for tribal communities is now gone.
• Over $100 million of annual property taxes for rural American communities is now gone.

We cannot begin to wrap our head around how during a time of high unemployment and a struggling U.S. economy the President would cancel a pipeline that provides thousands of good-paying jobs and revenue our country desperately needs.

Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) said in a statement, “Killing the Keystone XL pipeline and rejoining the Paris Agreement will eliminate good-paying jobs … [it is] imperative that Congress aggressively exercises oversight and pushes back on the worst impulses of Washington bureaucrats.”

We hope other lawmakers step up to voice the economic impact canceling this pipeline would have. At the very least, voice the concerns of the constituents they represent. Over-regulation and a top-down approach to the oil and gas sector is not the answer and hurts energy-rich communities across the country.