keystone pipeline

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In this photo taken by a drone on Dec. 9, cleanup continues in the area where the ruptured Keystone pipeline dumped oil into a creek in Washington County, Kan. DroneBase via AP hide caption

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DroneBase via AP

Climate

The Keystone pipeline leaked in Kansas. What makes this spill so bad?

December 17, 2022 • The cause for the spill is still unclear. What's known is the type of oil that was piped: tar sands oil, also called diluted bitumen. It's a lot harder to clean up than conventional oil.

Keystone Spill Likely Caused By Construction Damage, Investigators Say

The pipeline on rural farmland near the small community of Amherst, S.D., was likely damaged when it was installed in 2008, federal investigators say. DroneBase via AP hide caption

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DroneBase via AP

The Two-Way

Keystone Spill Likely Caused By Construction Damage, Investigators Say

November 29, 2017 • The leak was initially estimated to have released some 210,000 gallons of crude. Federal investigators say that they now have an "unconfirmed lower spill estimate," without specifying how much.

Keystone Pipeline Oil Spill Reported In South Dakota

A protest sign sits in the proposed path of the Keystone XL Pipeline in Silver Creek, Neb. Nati Harnik/AP hide caption

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Nati Harnik/AP

The Two-Way

Keystone Pipeline Oil Spill Reported In South Dakota

November 16, 2017 • The oil leak occurs just a few days before Nebraska state regulators will decide on the fate of TransCanada's controversial sister project, the Keystone XL Pipeline.