Close X
Friday, October 4, 2024
ADVT 
National

U.S. cabinet member cites new concern in Keystone XL decision: aboriginal rights

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 04 Dec, 2014 12:32 PM

    WASHINGTON — From within the Obama cabinet, there's a new argument being made against the Keystone XL pipeline — and this one involves aboriginal rights.

    A U.S. cabinet member has cited aboriginal lands as a concern as her colleagues in the Obama administration near the completion of a review into the Canadian oil project.

    The secretary of the interior laid out that concern in an interview.

    "I think the fact that tribal nations are standing up saying, 'We're concerned about this. We're concerned about water quality. We're concerned about tribal sovereignty. We're concerned about what this pipeline may do for our lands and our rights,' needs to be heard," Sally Jewell said in an interview with MSNBC.

    "In my role as secretary of the interior we will make sure there is a platform for those tribal voices to be heard. And I think they will be able to make a very effective case, because they know their lands better than we do."

    Last month, a South Dakota tribal leader warned that approving the pipeline would be an act of war. Sioux Rosebud president Cyril Scott said the pipeline would cross treaty lands and that his people weren't consulted as a sovereign nation.

    Pipeline opponents celebrated Jewell's words.

    A Nebraska activist who helped organize the initial campaign against the pipeline described it as a first in the years-long debate — since the conversation hasn't dwelled much on aboriginal concerns, as opposed to the economic effects, climate concerns, and even ranchers' rights, which have driven the discussion.

    "For the past five years, the voices of Native Nations have not been acknowledged in a public and high-level way," Jane Kleeb said in an email Thursday.

    "They just were."

    She said the White House has now acknowledged the opposition of both ranchers and tribes, which she called key to stopping the pipeline.

    The White House has previously cited a lawsuit involving ranchers as one reason it can't yet make a decision on the route. A small fraction of landowners on the route in Nebraska are still fighting the project, and a decision is expected within weeks by the state Supreme Court.

    A decision by the administration could come any time thereafter. The final call ultimately rests with President Barack Obama — following a review led by the State Department, with input from other departments.

    The pipeline company, meanwhile, said it was going above and beyond legal requirements to work with aboriginal communities.

    "Keystone XL does not cross any reservation lands or lands held in trust," said a statement from Mark Cooper, a spokesman at TransCanada Corp.

    "However, as part of TransCanada's Native American Policy — and despite the pipeline not crossing any reservation lands or lands held in trust — we do offer to provide community investment funding to tribal communities for various training programs, education programs, scholarships and work opportunities in their communities."

    A bid to force approval of the pipeline made it halfway through Congress, before a bill stalled last month in the Senate.

    The issue will resurface in the new year — either through a new piece of legislation when a new Republican majority takes control of the Senate, or through a decision to approve the project by the Obama administration.

    In either case, however, the final decision is still Obama's. That's because even a bill on the pipeline, passed by Congress, couldn't become law without his signature.

    MORE National ARTICLES

    Accident During Rodeo Mountain Horse Race Kills 44-Year-Old B.C. Man

    Accident During Rodeo Mountain Horse Race Kills 44-Year-Old B.C. Man
    The accident occurred Sunday afternoon at the Redstone Rodeo near the community of Alexis Creek, about 660 kilometres north of Vancouver.

    Accident During Rodeo Mountain Horse Race Kills 44-Year-Old B.C. Man

    Kinder Morgan doesn't need permission to study Burnaby Mountain route

    Kinder Morgan doesn't need permission to study Burnaby Mountain route
    VANCOUVER - Kinder Morgan can go ahead with necessary studies of its preferred pipeline route through Burnaby Mountain without the consent of the city of Burnaby.

    Kinder Morgan doesn't need permission to study Burnaby Mountain route

    Ontario Won't Allow Turban-Wearing Sikhs To Ride Motorbike Without A Helmet

    Ontario Won't Allow Turban-Wearing Sikhs To Ride Motorbike Without A Helmet
    TORONTO - Ontario won't allow turban-wearing Sikhs to ride a motorcycle without wearing a helmet, a decision the Canadian Sikh Association called "deeply" disappointing.

    Ontario Won't Allow Turban-Wearing Sikhs To Ride Motorbike Without A Helmet

    One Wildfire Evacuation Order Left In B.C., But Flames Are Still Raging

    One Wildfire Evacuation Order Left In B.C., But Flames Are Still Raging
    VANCOUVER - Wildfires in British Columbia are choking the air in some regions with smoke and forcing officials to maintain a handful of evacuation alerts, orders and air-quality advisories.

    One Wildfire Evacuation Order Left In B.C., But Flames Are Still Raging

    Nelson Hart's Lawyer Seeks Stay On Assault, Threat Charges In Prison Incident

    Nelson Hart's Lawyer Seeks Stay On Assault, Threat Charges In Prison Incident
    ST. JOHN'S, N.L. - The lawyer for a Newfoundland man recently released from prison after murder charges were dropped says he has filed an application for a stay of proceedings on separate charges.

    Nelson Hart's Lawyer Seeks Stay On Assault, Threat Charges In Prison Incident

    Toronto Couple Who Killed Man's 10-Year-Old Son Files Notice Of Appeal

    Toronto Couple Who Killed Man's 10-Year-Old Son Files Notice Of Appeal
    TORONTO - A Toronto-area couple who killed the man's 10-year-old son after months of abuse that involved chaining the boy to his bed wants its second-degree murder conviction overturned.

    Toronto Couple Who Killed Man's 10-Year-Old Son Files Notice Of Appeal