The government shutdown could prevent the State Department from completing an environmental review of TransCanada‘s proposed Keystone XL pipeline, Reuters reported Thursday.Timothy Gardner writes the agency oversees the permit application for the project that would connect Canada’s oil sands to Texas refineries.
A State Department official told Reuters other U.S. agencies involved in the evaluation have been affected by shutdown-related furloughs and are unable to discuss their feedback.
The department consults the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Interior during the review process and was expected to issue a final report in mid-October, according to the article.
Gardner writes the draft report will be open for comment from eight agencies for 90 days before President Obama determines whether to approve the project.
