The Alberta Pipeline Causes Conflict

The Keystone XL is a controversial oil pipeline extension that would travel from Alberta, Canada, to the United States Gulf Coast. The Keystone XL should not be built because of the damage it would cause to the environment. The oil would be found within tar sands that contain bitumen. The process of extracting the crude oil uses a lot of energy and causes a large amount of greenhouse gases. Many citizens, in Canada and the United States, are outraged because it can be detrimental to the surrounding land and wildlife. TransCanada, the company building the oil pipeline, has to receive permission from the United States government to begin construction. If the United States does not have the pipeline built and chooses to not use Canada’s oil, then TransCanada will have the pipeline built elsewhere and exported to other countries. There has been a divide between those in favor of the Keystone XL and those who are not. The Keystone XL would be able to provide the United States with a reliable source of oil, but it would also take the risk of faults in the oil pipeline and ruining parts of America’s resourceful soil. The Keystone XL will cause a negative effect on the environment and damage resourceful land; therefore, the oil pipeline should not be constructed.

The history of oil pipelines in the U.S. supports both sides of the argument, but in the end one must not rely on history to decide whether or not to implement such a controversial pipeline. The Keystone XL Pipeline could be beneficial to the US economy but the dangers to the environment must be weighed in order to decide if the new oil pipeline is necessary. We live in a world that is trying to switch over to renewable energy and help reduce global warming. The increased production of oil in the United States might not be needed even though it might be beneficial to economic

Not just for Native Americans but for blacks, Muslims, Jews, and others, but even now we are dealing with Native American invasion and taking their land again, this time known as the Dakota Pipeline which is currently going on in North Dakota. The Dakota Pipeline is a large oil transmitting pipe that supplies oil across the United States but will be built on protected Native American land. The contractors have taken a look and have said that the pipeline would be a significant amount away from their land, but would be built under their water supply from Lake Oahe and would be at the closest 95 feet under the lake. But the Standing Rock Sioux haven't given up hope they have burought up that there have been over 3,300 incidents in which pipes have had leaks that have affected the environment drinking water and much more. The contractors have said that they have taken extreme precautions and have safety tested everything the Sioux aren't going to take any chances. Even as the Sioux and over 50 other tribes have protested there have been no clear winner of the battle on the Dakota Pipeline. The tribes have been protesting for months and though few have gotten violent many Natives and others with them have been arrested and thrown in jail, which is just another way people can attack the Native People to this

Next, the political sociology approach focuses to centre on groups and societal forces ((Blidook, Cochrane, Dyck, 2017). There are many social cleavages such as regions, economic classes, and ethnic groups that cause differing opinions. Alberta works with Kinder Morgan to benefit their economy however the province does not cater towards the needs of British Columbia. Kinder Morgan does not consider the impact to the First Nations, as they are an ethnic group who value nature. Similarly, the Canadian government does not consider the different economic classes that will be affected by the pipeline, if an oil spill/leak were to occur. Plus, with the expansion of the pipelines there will be no affordable housing, there will be alcohol and drug

The Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion project has brought forth many conflicting arguments, thus resulting in some parties being for it and some against it. I believe however, the risks are far greater than the rewards. The controversies surrounding the oil pipeline have brought up significant reports regarding environmental safety and concern with also safety and concern of the public. Due to the fact that presently, there is one operational pipeline running from Alberta to the Pacific Coast, I believe the introduction of a new pipeline would have disastrous consequences if something were to happen whether being an oil spill or a fire. The NEB (National Energy Board) failed to mention significant situations in which this pipeline could significantly

“In a few decades, the relationship between the environment, resources, and conflict may seem almost as obvious as the connection we see today between human rights, democracy, and peace (Nobel Peace Prize Medalist Maathai 2004).” A Canadian oil company that goes by TransCanada hopes to build an oil pipeline that would extend an enormous 1,200 miles onto an already gargantuan 2,600 mile long pipeline. Keystone XL represents just under a third of the entire Keystone project, and every other piece of pipe has been built and laid out. In fact, TransCanada 's pipeline system is already shipping hundreds of thousands of barrels of crude oil from the Canadian oil sands across the U.S. border -- and into Illinois (Diamond). The current proposal would take the pipeline on a journey all the way through to Texas. Extracting crude oil from oil sands would be enormously problematic for the environment as it causes the pumping of about 17% more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere than standard crude oil extraction. Tar sand oil has levels of carbon dioxide emissions that are three to four times higher than those of conventional oil, due to more energy-intensive removal and refining processes (Friends of the Earth). The construction of the Keystone XL pipeline would stimulate employment, the effects would be temporary and the whole scheme would produce a negative long term outcome. The construction of the Keystone XL pipeline has caused

This leaves the tribes fighting against the pipeline helpless when it comes to actions that they can take against these corporations in court. This is due to a recent order from President Trump to the department of the army to do whatever it took to build the pipeline. Before this order in the Obama administration work on the pipeline had been stopped due to it going through a stretch of government-owned land. It has now resumed due to army engineers giving the go ahead for the pipeline to be continued to be built through the government-owned land once again leaving the tribes helpless. The lack of wealth from these tribes also gives them less power than that of the wealthy corporations they fight against. This prevents the tribes from hiring good legal representation in the courts. Also in the eyes of businessman and lawmakers is that the risk to the environment is worth it for the economic benefits of the pipeline. Taking in any considerations for the health for those that could that be affected by pipeline as acceptable collateral damage, devaluing their worth as humans. Sicangu Lakota reinforced this by stating that is pipeline would directly contaminate their sources of drinking water. This contamination would be equal to or even worse than the contamination that Flint,

Northern Gateway pipeline proposal heading toward showdown over First Nations rights. Dene Moore. The Canadian Press. December 14, 2012. http://www.vancouversun.com/technology/Northern+Gateway+pipeline+proposal+heading+toward+showdown/7699792/story.html. Retrieved on March 10, 2013.

Though failure to stop the pipeline has prevailed, they along with many other tribes and protestors have did have the opportunity to have their concerns popularized and voiced through social media with the help of young allies. They continue to strive for representation and equal treatment in our federal government, regardless of the president who holds office, whom heavily supported the infiltration of sacred, Native lands. An appeal is still possible at this point, but for now the Winnebago and many other tribes are at a standstill, with destruction of their lands, burial grounds, and possible water pollution in the fate of the federal

The next major environmental issue of the pipeline is the indigenous populations. “Northern Alberta’s, where the tar sands oil comes from, people are coming under attack because of their operation of the tar sands in their livelihoods and cultural traditions.”5 Other people affected by this project are the people who live in communities downstream from the tailing ponds, “they have seen spikes in rates of rare cancers, renal failure, lupus, and hyperthyroidism.” “In the lakeside village of Fort Chipewyan, for example, one hundred of the town’s one thousand-two hundred residents have died from cancer.”5 So not only will this pipeline affect the people living around it but it will also affect the people working on it and living around the tailing ponds, wherever those may be located. With it traversing six U.S. states that means a lot of people could get sick and even die from a project that has so many issues with it before it’s even began to be used for its intended purpose.

There has been very many event that have caused protests and controversies over the U.S. in recent weeks. Some of these controversies have a lot of people involved and some not so many. So controversies that some people have been protesting about is capornicks kneeling during the national anthem. More protest and controversies that have been going on in recent weeks is about the election of President Elect. Donald Trump. One of the most talked about controversies in these last couple weeks is the pipeline in North Dakota.

Native Americans are being disrespected, harmed, and their homeland is being taken from them. Am I talking about events taken place centuries ago? No, because these unfortunate circumstances yet again are occurring right here, now, in the present. This horrid affair has a name: The Dakota Access Pipeline. This Pipeline is an oil transporting pipeline, which is funded by the U.S Army Corps of Engineers, who have devised a plan for the pipeline to run through the states of North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, and Illinois. However, unfortunately, this pipeline will run straight through the reservation of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. The Standing Rock Sioux tribe, expressing their distress for the pipeline have said, that the pipeline will be “Destroying our burial sites, prayer sites, and culturally significant artifacts,” Arguments for the pipeline however have tried to counter this claim, trying to emphasize that “The pipeline wouldn 't just be an economic boon, it would also significantly decrease U.S. reliance on foreign oil”, and that the pipeline is estimated to produce “374.3 million gallons of gasoline per day.”, which could help the sinking oil economy. (Yan, 2016) However, despite the economical growth it could achieve, the Dakota Access Pipeline could have damaging environmental effects on the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and the areas surrounding.

The pipeline not only poses a threat to one of only 326 Native American reservations left in this country, but also to the environment as a whole. Regardless of where you stand, the wrongdoing on the part of the United States Government is undeniable. The Dakota Access Pipeline is corrupt at its core and the dangers surrounding its construction have the potential to be catastrophic to the dwindling Native population by threatening their only source of water. A significant saying within the Sioux tribe, especially in times of protest, is a simple one, but one that is clearly not understood by some, and that is “water is

The first group we will outline is the Sioux peoples of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation. The outermost layer, the positions of these people, are that that the proposed pipeline trespasses on their land that is believed to have been illegally taken in 1868, and furthermore that they were completely left out of the initial decisions to move forward with the pipeline plans. Going deeper, we can look at the interests of the Sioux people and see that what they wish to achieve out of the conflict negotiation is to gain back rights on their land, receive respect, and to have their voice heard through democracy. Lastly, at the core we may find their needs. Most likely, the Sioux peoples would say they require clean drinking water (which could be affected by the placement of the pipeline), their land, and their livelihoods. The second stakeholder to look at are concerned environmentalists. As a spectator interest group, their onion speaks for the health of the land, water, and life near or on the proposed site. The environmentalists’ position is that they are against a pipeline structure that could result in environmental damage, and demand awareness of environmental health, as well as a thoroughly accurate environmental impact statement. Their interests are respect for the land, water and wildlife, accurate public information, and environmental protection. Lastly, if we look at the

For every spill of oil or gas, it damages that ecosystem sometimes beyond repair or it takes it many many years to recover from it. That being said the North Dakota Pipeline is going to be one of the safest most technologically advanced pipelines in the world. Another controversy is that the Native Americans are claiming that the pipeline runs through some of their sacred lands and can possibly contaminate their water supply. The North Dakota Pipeline can be a very successful oil transporter but there also seems to be some drawbacks like it possibly running through sacred land, contaminating water, and the possibility of leaking or exploding and causing a major disaster for the people and animals that live