There are many things President Biden has promised to accomplish throughout his term. One of those being the protection of the environment and fighting against global warming. President Biden has promised to reverse much of what was done under the Trump administration, and now we are starting to see those results. The Keystone XL pipeline has been a controversial topic for many years and now is no exception. President Biden recently rescinded the permit for the pipeline and has completely halted the construction of it.
For those that may not know, the pipeline runs from oil sand fields in Alberta, Canada to Cushing, Oklahoma. The purpose of the pipeline is to extract oil from the ground. The people opposed to the pipeline are concerned about the environmental effects the pipeline would have. One issue regarding the pipeline is that there is a risk of spillage into waters. The pipeline would also pass through the Sandhills region which is said to be a fragile ecosystem, according to NPR. People and wildlife that come into contact with tar sands oil can be exposed to toxic chemicals as well. There are just simply too many fragile areas that could be affected by the pipeline. On the other hand, many are concerned about how this will affect many workers. Since the construction of the pipeline has been brought to a halt, many people are said to lose their jobs. Of course, there is also the concern that the US needs to be able to extract the oil.
I understand both sides of the argument, but I must agree that it is best to stop the production of the pipeline. The environmental effects the pipeline has will not be easily repairable in the future. We are already in the middle of a climate crisis and time is not slowing down for anybody. Action has to be taken now in order to give the Earth a fighting chance, and if stopping the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline helps, then it must be done. Many say this will be terrible for the economy, but the way I see it, is that there will be no economy in the future if action is not taken now. Mankind and all life on Earth will cease to exist if we do not protect the environment now. Global warming is a very real threat to humanity and we must take all actions necessary to ensure we protect the Earth.
I often feel like many people make decisions based on what they have to gain. The people that are in charge now will not be here in fifty years. The decisions being made now will not actually start to show effects until many years from now. I find it to be incredibly selfish for people in power to make decisions that will only benefit them in this moment. People in power must think about the generations to come and the future they will have. If the construction of the pipeline were to continue, future generations will be inheriting a world that is far beyond repair. This is not an issue of Democrat vs Republican or left vs right. This is an issue concerning all life on Earth. As humans, it is our duty to protect the Earth and protect all living creatures on it.
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