WASHINGTON, June 16 (UPI) -- Spills and concerns over oil sand safety raise questions over U.S. government support for the Keystone XL pipeline, an advocacy group said.
A U.S. House subcommittee on energy and commerce passed a measure that calls on the government to make a decision on an extension to the proposed Keystone pipeline from Canada by November.
Regulators and environmentalists are worried about the potential for spills and uncertainty about the safety of transiting oil from tar sands in Canada. Cynthia Giles, an administrator at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, said last week that Keystone was a serious concern following oil spills on similar lines in Michigan and Illinois last year.
TransCanada is pushing for a $13.3 billion extension to its Keystone pipeline to Texas refineries.
Jim Lyon, senior vice president at the National Wildlife Federation, said TransCanada's legacy suggests the extension is bad business.
"This is an ill-conceived, ill-timed proposal that does not serve our national interests," he said in a statement regarding the House measure.
TransCanada has pointed to research by IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates that said Keystone was needed to bring regional markets up to date on oil sands trends.
