Keystone XL, revised

Canadian oil firm TransCanada has pitched a revised route of its controversial Keystone XL pipeline that would circumvent the environmentally sensitive Sandhills region of Nebraska.

In January, President Obama rejected the oil company’s original proposal, which would have transported tar-sands oil from Alberta to Texas and over Nebraska’s critical Ogallala Aquifer, citing the need for further environmental review, according to SFGate.com. TransCanada submitted a new application to the State Department, proposing a route that would avoid the aquifer and connect with a hub in Steele City, Neb. From there, it would link with other TransCanada pipelines for transport to the Gulf Coast.

The pipeline has become the subject of heated political debate between Obama and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, who maintains the $7 billion project would create jobs.