"Keystone XL Pipeline Fate In Balance As Nebraska Opens Hearings"

"LINCOLN, Neb. - Nebraska regulators will hear final arguments for and against TransCanada Corp’s proposed Keystone XL pipeline this week before deciding whether to approve its route later this year, the last big hurdle for the long-delayed project after President Donald Trump gave it federal approval.

The proposed 1,179-mile (1,897-km) pipeline linking Canada’s Alberta oil sands to U.S. refineries has been a lightning rod of controversy for nearly a decade, pitting environmentalists worried about spills and global warming against business advocates who say the project will lower fuel prices, shore up national security, and bring jobs.

Trump's administration handed TransCanada a federal permit for the pipeline in March, reversing a decision by former President Barack Obama to reject the project on environmental grounds. But the line still needs a nod from regulators in Nebraska – the last of three states to approve its proposed path into the heartland."

Kevin O'Hanlon reports for Reuters August 7, 2017.

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"Nebraska Regulators Block Testimony Ahead Of Keystone XL Hearings" (Reuters)