Petition to Stop Southern Leg of Keystone XL Pipeline Delivered to White House

Today, climate justice leaders peaceably assembled outside the White House to demand that the Obama Administration intervene to stop the construction of the nearly completed 485-mile southern leg of the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline in Texas and Oklahoma. There to deliver a petition signed by more than 7,000 people from all 50 states, they are calling on the tar sands pipeline to be stopped in its entirety. The petition is endorsed by Daryl Hannah, Ed Begley, Jr., Mariel Hemingway, Lester Brown, Julia Butterfly Hill, Paul Hawken, James Hansen, Tim DeChristopher, Debra White Plume and many others.
"TransCanada's Keystone XL pipeline has destroyed my property and the future of my children and grandchildren and was approved and promoted by President Obama." said Texas landowner Michael Bishop, who won a court injunction in 2012 temporarily stopping the pipeline's construction, and has filed other lawsuits to permanently shut it down.
Tom Weis, president of Climate Crisis Solutions, who pedaled the petition more than 485 miles to the White House, played off of words the president spoke when he flew to Cushing, OK, last March to fast track construction of the pipeline's southern leg; "Today we are calling on the president to direct his administration to cut through the red tape, break through the bureaucratic hurdles, and make stopping the construction of Keystone XL's southern leg a priority, to go ahead and get it done," Weis said.
TransCanada has also taken part of Julia Trigg Crawford's family farm through eminent domain for Keystone XL's southern leg, a taking she is appealing to the Texas Supreme Court. "Today this monster pipeline lies quiet and empty beneath my family's Texas farm, and I stand firm with others in demanding it stay that way," she said. "The risks are too great to allow this pipeline to go on line and threaten our homes with toxic tar sands. President Obama, it is not too late to right this great wrong."
"I stand with Tom Weis in challenging this administration to stop speaking out of both sides of their mouth and to take a stand against this pipeline being completed," Bishop continued. "The climate crisis demands that all tar sands development in Canada be stopped. This administration must wake up to the lion at our doorstep."
"For Gulf Coast communities of color that are forced to breathe poisoned refinery air, KXL South would spell even more dangerous toxic emissions," said Tar Sands Blockade spokesperson Ron Seifert. "KXL South is an environmental justice issue, and the only way President Obama can be on the right side of justice is if he acts to block the pipeline before it goes online."
Renewing a call he originally made in 2010, when he pedaled 2,500 miles from Boulder, CO, to Washington, D.C., in support of a national goal of 100 percent renewable electricity for the U.S. by 2020, Weis concluded, "The severity of the climate crisis demands a green energy 'moon shot' for America. It's time for our generation to stand up and do something great."
Visit EcoWatch’s KEYSTONE XL page for more related news on this topic.
New EarthX Special 'Protecting the Amazon' Suggests Ways to Save the World’s Greatest Rainforest
To save the planet, we must save the Amazon rainforest. To save the rainforest, we must save its indigenous peoples. And to do that, we must demarcate their land.
A new EarthxTV film special calls for the protection of the Amazon rainforest and the indigenous people that call it home. EarthxTV.org
- Meet the 'Women Warriors' Protecting the Amazon Forest - EcoWatch ›
- Indigenous Tribes Are Using Drones to Protect the Amazon ... ›
- Amazon Rainforest Will Collapse by 2064, New Study Predicts ... ›
- Deforestation in Amazon Skyrockets to 12-Year High Under Bolsonaro ›
- Amazon Rainforest on the Brink of Turning Into a Net Carbon Emitter ... ›
EcoWatch Daily Newsletter
By Anke Rasper
"Today's interim report from the UNFCCC is a red alert for our planet," said UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres.
The report, released Friday, looks at the national climate efforts of 75 states that have already submitted their updated "nationally determined contributions," or NDCs. The countries included in the report are responsible for about 30% of the world's global greenhouse gas emissions.
- World Leaders Fall Short of Meeting Paris Agreement Goal - EcoWatch ›
- UN Climate Change Conference COP26 Delayed to November ... ›
- 5 Years After Paris: How Countries' Climate Policies Match up to ... ›
- Biden Win Puts World 'Within Striking Distance' of 1.5 C Paris Goal ... ›
- Biden Reaffirms Commitment to Rejoining Paris Agreement ... ›
Trending
Plastic Burning Makes It Harder for New Delhi Residents to See, Study Suggests
India's New Delhi has been called the "world air pollution capital" for its high concentrations of particulate matter that make it harder for its residents to breathe and see. But one thing has puzzled scientists, according to The Guardian. Why does New Delhi see more blinding smogs than other polluted Asian cities, such as Beijing?
- This Indian Startup Turns Polluted Air Into Climate-Friendly Tiles ... ›
- How to Win the Fight Against Plastic - EcoWatch ›
In a historic move, the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) voted Thursday to ban hydraulic fracking in the region. The ban was supported by all four basin states — New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania and New York — putting a permanent end to hydraulic fracking for natural gas along the 13,539-square-mile basin, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
- Appalachian Fracking Boom Was a Jobs Bust, Finds New Report ... ›
- Long-Awaited EPA Study Says Fracking Pollutes Drinking Water ... ›
- Pennsylvania Fracking Water Contamination Much Higher Than ... ›
Colombia is one of the world's largest producers of coffee, and yet also one of the most economically disadvantaged. According to research by the national statistic center DANE, 35% of the population in Columbia lives in monetary poverty, compared to an estimated 11% in the U.S., according to census data. This has led to a housing insecurity issue throughout the country, one which construction company Woodpecker is working hard to solve.
- Kenyan Engineer Recycles Plastic Into Bricks Stronger Than ... ›
- Could IKEA's New Tiny House Help Fight the Climate Crisis ... ›