Over 27,000 residents petition State Department for oil pipeline

Florida Executive Director Kevin Doyle reported to local Historic City News reporters in St Augustine that the Consumer Energy Alliance, in partnership with Associated Industries of Florida, has recruited 27,787 Florida residents to petition the US Department of State to approve construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline because of the jobs, energy and economic security generated by the project.

The proposed Keystone XL Pipeline would deliver 830,000 barrels of US and Canadian crude oil per day to refineries along the Gulf Coast in Texas. Its construction will help create more than 42,000 jobs nationwide, and generate more than $20 billion in new economic growth for the struggling US economy.

“The comments from thousands of Floridians that we are submitting today reflect what people across the country are saying: we need jobs, we need a stronger economy, and we need to build the Keystone XL Pipeline,” Doyle told reporters. “Not only will it help reduce fuel prices for families coast to coast, it will dramatically improve our energy security by reducing our reliance on overseas oil.”

Keystone XL received approval from Canada’s National Energy Board in 2010, but the project also requires a Presidential Permit from the US Department of State because it crosses an international border.

“The Keystone XL Pipeline will be the safest pipeline ever built in the United States,” said Brewster Bevis, Associated Industries of Florida Senior Vice President, State and Federal Affairs. “Stronger energy security and lower fuel prices aren’t the only things that come with the new Keystone XL Pipeline — construction will bring new jobs, new customers, new business, new sales, and new investment.”

Both Bevis and Doyle say that investing in infrastructure projects is a big part of what can be done to boost the economy, and we need that boost now.

In January, a bipartisan coalition of 53 senators, including Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), sent a letter to President Obama urging him to approve the Keystone XL Pipeline. The U.S. Senate voted in March to approve the proposed Keystone XL Pipeline in an amendment to the Senate budget. Both Sen. Rubio and Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) voted in favor of the pipeline.

Consumer Energy Alliance brings together consumers, producers and manufacturers to engage in a meaningful dialogue about America’s energy future. Our mission is to help ensure stable prices for consumers and energy security. We believe energy development is something that touches everyone in our nation, and thus it is necessary for all consumers to actively engage in the conversation about how we develop and diversify our energy resources and energy’s importance to the economy. CEA promotes a thoughtful dialogue to help produce our abundant energy supply, and balance our energy needs with our nation’s environmental and conservation goals.