Keystone XL rejected

The Obama administration announced on Jan. 18 it rejected TransCanada‘s plans to construct the controversial Keystone XL Pipeline project on grounds that the deadline imposed by Congress did not provide enough time for sufficient review, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

The proposed $7 billion pipeline, which would have transported tar-sands oil 2,000 miles from Alberta to refineries on the Gulf Coast, has been a politically divisive issue for months. Those in favor of the project believe it would decrease U.S. dependence on oil from the Middle East, while protesters have decried the potential negative environmental impacts.

However, President Obama said the company can still submit a revised plan that would avoid the Ogallala Aquifer in Nebraska, which provides a source of water for millions of people and has been the subject of heated debate.