Nebraska state Senator Annette Dubas on Tuesday introduced a bill giving oil pipeline siting authority to a state agency in what many read as an effort to change the current route of TransCanada's controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline project.
TransCanada has said that about 112 miles of Keystone XL's current route will cross over the state's Ogallala aquifer, a key watershed for the region's agricultural interests. The pipeline, which would transport heavy crude from Canadian oil sands from Hardisty, Alberta, to the US Gulf Coast, has provoked protests in the US among environmentalists opposed to oil sands and landowners who fear a pipeline spill.
The company said earlier Tuesday that altering the route would delay the project's regulatory process by two to three years and that further delays might cost it current committed customers.
The project's cross-border permit application is pending before the US State Department, which has said to expect a decision by year-end. But, some recent comments by officials indicate a decision could be delayed until the early part of 2012.
Nebraska's Governor Dave Heineman last week called for a special session on the 1,700-mile Keystone XL project. He has said he opposes the pipeline's route, but is in support of the pipeline.
Under Dubas' proposed major oil pipeline siting act in the state's unicameral Legislature, a "major oil pipeline" could not be constructed or operated in Nebraska without the approval of the state's Public Service Comission.
The act would seek to "ensure the welfare of Nebraskans, including protection of property rights, aesthetic values, and economic interests... [and] maximize the lawful protection of Nebraska's natural resources by requiring the location of routes of major oil pipelines within Nebraskas to minimize pipeline intrusions of any land areas and connected natural resources," according to a copy of the 25-page bill.
Dubas' bill adds Nebraska has the authority to "protect its land and natural resources for economic and aesthetic purposes... through approval or disapproval of major oil pipeline siting and the location of routes so long as it does not regulate in the area of safety as to the construction, operation, maintenance, decommissioning or other circumstances surrounding a major oil pipeline."
The bill said the state's "irrigation economy" relies on quality water and adds over $1 billion annually to farm income and increases the gross state product by $3 billion annually.
Some Nebraska lawmakers had said they expected a flurry of siting legislation bills to be proposed, but by the end of the first day of special session on November 1, Dubas' was the only one introduced. A staffer for Dubas said Dubas was unavailable for comment and did not elaborate on the bill.
After a bill is introduced, it will be assigned to a committee, then undergo a public hearing. If a committee then decides to forward the proposed bill afterward to the full Legislature, senators will then debate the bill.
Lawmakers have until late November 3 to introduce bills, with hearings on bills set for next week. Some anticipate a drawn-out special session that could run up until Thanksgiving.
State Senator Ken Haar said on Tuesday that he was considering introducing a bill on Thursday that would establish "restrictive zones where you simply can't put a pipeline," adding that North Dakota has one such bill in place.
"There are places on the map in North Dakota where you can't build a pipeline, period," Haar said.
Haar said any bill will need 25 votes by senators to pass and 33 to invoke an emergency clause so a bill would take effect immediately.
State Senator Scott Lautenbaugh, who is opposed to changing Keystone XL's current route, said in a phone interview on Tuesday that any bill to change Keystone XL's route may not get enough backing. He predicted that "there won't be enough votes for a material change" to change the route.
He said he did not know when the special session might end.
"Right now none of us knows what's going to happen," Lautenbaugh said.
