Perry Says Time to Move Pipeline Project Forward

AUSTIN — Now that the State Department has raised no environmental objections to the construction of the Keystone XL oil pipeline, Texas Governor Rick Perry says it’s time to move the project forward. Lucy Nashed with the governor’s office says, “If, as the president said in his State of the Union speech, he truly wants this to be a year of action, there would be no better way to kick it off than with authorizing the construction of this important project.” According to Nashed, one more environmental impact study is awaited before construction could begin. The southern leg of the pipeline runs through much of East Texas, including part of eastern Smith County. That leg began transporting oil last month.