Why Keystone XL pipeline is Such a Bad Idea. One Stop Shopping for Arguments to Help Your Friends Understand

Young man Afraid of his Horses, Chief of Oglala band of Lakota Sioux says "Don't Mess With My Water!"

Credit Wikipedia Clicking on picture should take you to proper page for attribution. See next link for info on YMAOHH, real name: They Fear Even His Horses

The Keystone XL pipeline will only provide temporary jobs except for a rump core of what some have said are 50-100 permanent jobs over the stretch of the line.  As it stands now the pipeline route would endanger the massive Ogallala Aquifer that serves most of the High Plains. See map below.  A spill into the Ogallala could cause a spike in food prices, not to mention hardship and possibly even serious illness in families, especially those with children who can be very sensitive to pollutants, that live in the area and get their drinking water from the massive underground source (much of which may date back to the last ice age).

In recent years the Ogallala has been shrinking because of heavier water use than rate of replenishment.  Good luck diluting out any large spill, and the more South a farmer using aquifer waters is, the more he or she depends on it just as the aquifer has less to offer for use or self protection.

Image from Wikipedia used by Creative Commons license specifically (CC BY-SA 3.0)

Though much of this land may be in corn or cattle pasture at this time, some farmers using Ogallala water have gone into organic farming.  It would  be a great help to our nation to have billions of bushels of veggies and fruits as well as the organic grass fed beef already coming out of the high plains.  If the Ogallala is polluted that scenario is not going to materialize.

And if you live in the region, I feel badly for your family.  Just like with the area around Fukushima, many of the powers that be want this to go through will promise you that everything will be okay. And it is, until it's not.  Then it's disaster.

Read important reports below:

Trans Canada is spending big time bribing House members to get their oil pipeline installed across our nation's heartland.

One video report notes that the original Keystone pipeline has already had 12 spills.

Also, another report says: Pipeline Inspector-Turned Whistleblower Calls Keystone XL a Potential Disaster 

Another important report to read: Keystone XL Primer: Why Nebraska Is Ground Zero in the Pipeline Fight
   Quick Take away (but it's best to read the entire report):

The Keystone XL would be the first oil pipeline to run through the Nebraska sandhills, a fragile area with few pipelines of any kind...

A report from February by the NRDC, Pipeline Safety Trust, Sierra Club and National Wildlife Foundation says diluted bitumen is more acidic and corrosive than conventional crude. It requires operators to run the pipeline at higher pressures, Swift said, leading to more friction inside the pipeline and creating extra heat that can further decrease pipeline safety.

Previous reports on our blog:

Proof that #Keystone XL Pipeline will Take #TarSands oil To Make Gasoline for World Market (Asia)

Canadian Filings Show TransCanada is Lying to Americans About Jobs the Keystone XL Pipeline Would Create