CEO Note: A Major Victory Against The Keystone Oil Pipeline - Oceana USA
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November 11, 2011

CEO Note: A Major Victory Against The Keystone Oil Pipeline

It’s easy for conservationists to feel like David in the fight against the Goliath. And although the smaller contestant won that biblical battle, before he did, David must have had moments of doubt. But we got news this week that shows that smart conservationists can effect real change, even against powerful opponents.

On Thursday, the Obama Administration announced it will delay the infamous $7 billion Keystone XL pipeline project, which would have brought 900,000 barrels of tar sands oil from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico, crossing 1,700 miles of American heartland.

Many conservation organizations have worked to stop this disastrous project, which will now enter a long and thorough review process. I must especially congratulate the Sierra Club, 350.org, Tar Sands Action and the Natural Resources Defense Council, which took a leadership role and planned last weekend’s peaceful protest at the White House. This was a sterling example of grassroots organization nabbing an important victory. We must also thank President Obama for listening and making the right choice.

Oceana got some good news from the federal government this week, too, when the administration announced its latest five-year offshore drilling plan. The U.S. Atlantic and Pacific coasts, as well as the eastern Gulf of Mexico, will continue to be protected from drilling.

But we still have a fight ahead. The five-year plan still leaves the U.S. Arctic and the rest of the Gulf of Mexico open to drilling, barely more than a year after the Deepwater Horizon disaster.

Oceana continues to fight dangerous drilling, as well as the misinformation like the notion that the United States can drill its way to $2 a gallon gas. American oil is sold to us at the world price, which is set through the balancing of global supply and demand. Domestic resources of oil are too small to play a significant role in world pricing.

Your help sustains us in the effort to win sensible, fact-based policies that protect the oceans. Thank you again.