Obama to decide on controversial TransCanada pipeline

President Obama said yesterday that he would decide on giving approval or denying a permit for a controversial 1,700-mile Canadian oil pipeline, rather than delegating the decision to the State Department.

TransCanada, the firm behind the project, proposes to pipe the crude extracted from a region in Alberta called the ''oil sands'' to Gulf Coast refineries. The issue has become politically charged with the labour unions and business groups arguing that it would create thousands of jobs in the midst of an economic downturn, while environmentalists maintain the environmental impact would be severe. They say, the extraction of the oil would accelerate global warming and the pipeline itself could spill, polluting waterways.

In an interview with the Omaha television station KETV, Obama said he would weigh the potential economic benefits for the pipeline against its possible environmental consequences.

Referring to the State Department, Obama told KETV, ''They'll be giving me a report over the next several months and, you know, my general attitude is: What is best for the American people? What's best for our economy both short term and long term? But also: What's best for the health of the American people?''

''We don't want, for example, aquifers'' to be adversely affected, he said, adding, ''folks in Nebraska obviously would be directly impacted, and so we want to make sure we're taking the long view on these issues.''

''We need to encourage domestic oil and natural gas production,'' Obama continued. ''We need to make sure that we have energy security and aren't just relying on Middle East sources. But there's a way of doing that and still making sure that the health and safety of the American people and folks in Nebraska are protected, and that's how I'll be measuring these recommendations when they come to me.''