A top State Department official on Wednesday defended the Obama administration’s rationale for denying a permit for the Keystone XL oil pipeline against attacks from Republicans who say the decision was politically motivated and will cost jobs.
Assistant Secretary of State Kerri-Ann Jones said a Feb. 21 decision deadline imposed by Congress didn’t provide the department enough time to assess alternative routes avoiding the environmentally sensitive Sandhills region of Nebraska, which is home to a drinking-water aquifer.
“Without that information, we’d also not be able to look at other factors, socioeconomic factors, environmental factors, as well as foreign policy and energy security,” Jones told the House Energy and Commerce and Committee‘s energy and power subcommittee.
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