US President Obama Rejects Keystone XL Pipeline From Canada

US President Barack Obama has announced he is rejecting an application to build the Keystone XL pipeline from Canada.

Speaking from the White House, he said it would not have served the "national interests" of the US.
Its construction has been hotly disputed for seven years, with environmentalists saying it would do irreparable damage.

But the president said the pipeline had taken on an "overinflated role" in the climate change debate.
The proposed pipeline would have run 1,179-miles (1,897km) taking 800,000 barrels of oil a day from Alberta, Canada, to Steele City, Nebraska.

But Mr Obama said it would not have:

• lowered petrol prices
• created long-term jobs
• affected energy dependence

"The pipeline would not make a meaningful long-term contribution to our economy," he said.
Republican presidential candidates condemned the news, with Jeb Bush calling it an attack on the US economy.
In February, the Republican-led Congress voted to begin construction immediately, but Mr Obama vetoed the bill to await environmental reports.
It took more than seven years, but Barack Obama has finally got to "no".