Security concerns latest Keystone XL woe

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LINCOLN, Neb., May 3 (UPI) -- A Nebraska security official said he was concerned that out-of-state activists may turn up in the state to protests Keystone XL pipeline construction.

Pipeline company TransCanada is waiting for U.S. government approval to build the cross-border pipeline. Opposition to the pipeline's route through a sensitive ecosystem in Nebraska caused delays.

County supervisors in Nebraska voted unanimously against the pipeline's construction. The decision from the Holt County supervisors carries no legal weight, though local officials said they were casting a symbolic vote out of fear of the pipeline's long-term environmental threat, the Lincoln (Neb.) Journal Star reports.

Jane Kleeb, director of pipeline opponent Bold Nebraska, said the group doesn't foresee anything stronger than peaceful opposition to the pipeline should construction go forward.

Nevertheless, Nance County Sheriff Dave Moore said his seven-man team needed outside support to help secure construction efforts.

"We'll rely on the state patrol and hopefully on the federal government for some outside help," he was quoted as saying.

Opponents of the pipeline, already under construction, have chained themselves to trees as an act of protest. Anti-pipeline demonstrations in front of the White House have been a common occurrence.