BBAKKEN BREAKOUT • January 2012
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barrels of Bakken oil daily away from North Dakota highways and into the pipeline system, fewer trucks will be in use enhancing public safety in the region. In general terms, 100,000 barrels equates to approximately 500 truckloads per day, which also cause considerable wear and tear on existing infrastructure. Another positive is that it enhances the price for North Dakota oil which currently trades at a discount due to transportation inefficiencies.
The Keystone XL pipeline will unquestionably remain at the forefront leading up to and after the presidential election. Along the way, any reasonable environmental concern should certainly be addressed with both sides working toward a common
solution that will no doubt involve shared compromise. That’s only fair.
In the energy-driven world in which we live, caution should never be thrown to the wind in order to meet the end game. Nor do we need to drill every square inch of land here in the United States or abroad. There is cause to set aside tracts of land at times, particularly those deemed public use by federal or state entities so all citizens can continue to enjoy them in their natural state for generations to come.
Nobody will ever claim the extraction, shipment or use of fossil fuels to be perfect. It never has been, nor will it be. Unless existing transportation methods
used to move people and product around in a global marketplace are abandoned — which isn’t practical any time soon — there will continue to be an ever- growing demand for oil both here at home and abroad.
The Keystone XL pipeline is a situation where political, special interest and free enterprise differences can and should be addressed using a common sense approach that gives consideration to the realities of the world. Whether that will happen within a reasonable time frame is difficult to predict. ■
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