New lawsuits threaten Canadian pipelines south of border

WASHINGTON—There are new threats of lawsuits against Canadian oil pipeline projects in the United States.

The legal threats suggest the election of an oil-friendly, Republican-dominated Congress hasn’t put recent pipeline battles to rest.

One activist fighting the Keystone XL project in Nebraska said landowners will sue should President Barack Obama sign any pro-Keystone XL bill passed by the new Congress.

Jane Kleeb said the grounds for such a suit would be constitutional, and revolve around whether Congress actually has the power to pass legislation on such cross-border infrastructure.

She compared it to the case currently before the Nebraska courts, which argues that the process to approve the route in that state was unconstitutional.

Last week, a spokesperson for Obama said the president and his staff would “consider” legislation authorizing the controversial pipeline.

There’s also a new lawsuit against another pipeline from Canada—this one in a Minnesota court against Enbridge Inc.’s plan to expand its existing Alberta Clipper network.