Indigenous Groups Denounce Nebraska Approval of Keystone XL

FEATURING JUDITH LEBLANC – The state of Nebraska’s Public Service Commission on Monday approved an alternate route of the Keystone XL pipeline, much to the dismay of environmental and indigenous activists. The controversial pipeline has been the focus of a tug-of-war between pro-fossil fuel politicians and grassroots activists worried that a major pipeline project such as this will have short-term consequences such as pollution and long-term consequences for climate change.

Their fears were confirmed on Thursday when the Keystone pipeline in South Dakota leaked 210,000 gallons of oil. Organizers hoped the spill would influence the Nebraska regulators saying it wasn’t a matter of if spills would occur, but when.

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Judith LeBlanc, Member of the Caddo Tribe of Oklahoma and executive director of the Native Organizers Alliance, a national organizing and training Native network.