LogFAQs > #928497934

Aaantlion posted...

Because the benefits vastly outweigh the minor consequences and, more importantly, it's a safer and more efficient method than using tanker trucks. The oil is being transported no matter what, you're just choosing the delivery method.

The difference being that pipelines are a long-term investment and commitment to expanding fossil fuel usage, which is the opposite of what we should be doing if we're actually going to do something about climate change. Trucks? Hitch up a different trailer and start hauling something else. You've got no infrastructure investment there to worry about. Trains (which are actually safer and more efficient than pipelines, provided the infrastructure is appropriately maintained to avoid another Lac Megantic)? You can use an expanded rail infrastructure to transport just about anything, cutting down on the amount of long-distance truck transport needed in the future (which is pretty overwhelmingly a good thing, given how hard trucks are on roads). Pipelines? They're good for oil. That's it.

Yes, pipelines are better than trucks, but only if you look at immediate, short-term usefulness. Provided future fossil fuel usage is reduced by as much as it really needs to be, pipelines are not a good investment.
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