Oil Works for Oil Pipelines in Nebraska
Amid one of the worst economic crises in decades, the US state of Nebraska is about to receive a $ 500 million boost from the oil industry. Work will begin shortly on the Nebraska section of the Keystone Pipeline, a 2,148-mile-long pipeline costing $ 5.2 billion that will transport half a million barrels of crude oil a day from Canada to refineries in the US. USA
Construction of the 215-mile section in Nebraska will cost £ 490 million and will employ up to 900 construction workers in the state, half of them employed by the local workforce. Once the pipeline is completed, it will help secure drilling jobs, oil rig jobs, and oil careers in both Canada and the US, and will be an integral part of the superstructure of the oil industry for years to come.
These pipelines, which cross the borders of states, counties and even countries, have been dubbed “travel stimulus packages” because of the amount of revenue they bring to the communities that host them. Not only oil jobs benefit from its construction, but also jobs on the margins of industry, particularly in heavy engineering. Those who work in the pipeline stay in local hotels, drink in local bars, and generally spend a fair percentage of their pay in the local community.
The company in charge of the operation, TransCanada, has also addressed environmental concerns expressed by residents who will have to live with the pipeline once it is completed. To build the Nebraska portion of the pipeline, TransCanada had to buy the rights to pass through the property of nearly 500 landowners, most of them farmers. Assurances that the pipeline is being built using state-of-the-art equipment and materials, including anti-corrosion polymer coatings and 24-hour monitoring from an operations center, have gone some way to securing complaints from environmentalists and residents.
With construction scheduled to begin on this section of the pipeline, TransCanada is already in the planning stages of an even larger, $ 7 billion pipeline that would cross the state further west during 2011 and 2012, ensuring again more jobs in both the construction and oil industries. The pipeline is designed to tap into the abundant reserve of Canadian tar sands oil that will reduce demand for oil abroad from countries with which the United States may have political “trouble.” The United States is determined to increase its supply of home-made petroleum products, and the Keystone project, which is an integral part of that plan, has been in the works for years. Development is ongoing, and another project will begin in Nebraska next year to connect a new branch of the pipeline that begins in southern Nebraska and connects to a pipeline complex in Oklahoma.
Compensation to landowners who will be directly affected by the pipeline and its construction could run into the millions of dollars, but the company sees good relationships with the people of Nebraska as an important part of the operation. The extensive environmental impact reports have provided the company with detailed knowledge of the exact impact of the pipeline and the compensation packages have taken into account the needs and requirements of the owners with great care. The company is even willing to pay to repair fences or replace trees damaged by the construction phase.
With an army of workers poised to descend on the state of Nebraska, the economic future looks a little brighter for this corner of the United States, and oil jobs in two countries will be secured with the completion of this pioneering project.