I wrote recently that it’s possible Lisa Jackson is stepping down from her position as administrator of the EPA because of the imminent approval of the Keystone XL pipeline. In response, frequent commenter Larry Lemmert notes:
(What will happen) if the Keystone pipeline (is) not permitted? China would pay for a transCanadian pipeline which crosses the Rockies and terminates in Vancouver. I think that the potential for ecological damage is at least as great and probably greater with this mountainous terrain. Now it gets really dicey when you consider what happens when the oil gets to China. Have you ever breathed the air in Beijing? Their environmental laws are almost nonexistent. If you are concerned about carbon dioxide emitted from burning this oil, consider that the same amount of CO2 circulates around the globe whether it is released in the USA or in China.
Without a doubt, we either help China fix its environmental issues or deal with the fact that what we’re doing here has very limited value.
Btw, this is exactly what I told a consultant sent here a couple of months ago by the German government who wanted my advice on what his country should do vis-à-vis clean energy. At the end of the 30-minute interview, I said, “I don’t want you to take this the wrong way, but I notice that every one of your questions concerns Germany, and it’s great that your country wants to be a leader in this critically important industry. But realize that, even if Germany reduces its carbon footprint to zero, you and I still live on the same planet as China. Our environment is only as healthy as its largest polluters. We either help them change what they’re doing, or the Earth is toast.”
