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Keystone XL Pipeline Case Study

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The pending Keystone XL pipeline (KXL) project and legalization of recreational and medical marijuana are both government policy issues currently at the forefront of public awareness. The policy decisions over the past 10 or so years have led to ongoing debate and progress in these areas. Intended as a cooperative effort between the U.S. and Canadian governments as well as private companies in both countries, the proposed TransCanada KXL would complement the current Keystone oil pipeline (TransCanada, 2017). The KXL is to take a more direct route across both countries, the path of which (Hardisty, Alberta to Steele City, Nebraska) is a subject of much controversy both in Canada and the United States.
Despite this controversy, the Canadian …show more content…

This is not a guarantee the KXL project will go forward, as the fate of the pipeline is still subject to state, local, and tribal approvals in addition to other obstacles (BBC News, 2017). One of the campaign promises of the Liberal Party leading up to the 2015 election was the legalization of recreational marijuana (globalnews, year) and as a result of the party’s win, Canada passed legislation in the spring of 2017 for the July 2018 commencement of legalized recreational marijuana. Canadians are already able to trade an Exchange Traded Fund (ETF), Horizons Marijuana Life Sciences ETF (HMMJ.TO) that focuses on the production of medical and recreational marijuana with a focus on the latter (Randall, 2017). A major concern that may result in a postponement of the July 2018 target date is Canada’s inclusion in several international treaties which essentially prohibit the legalization of marijuana, among other things (globalnews, year). Canada has the option of withdrawing from the treaties, however the deadline for initiating that process to have it completed by July 2018 has now passed. Despite this possible setback, Professor Steven Hoffman of York University in Toronto says, “The government still does have some options. Those options are not all great, but they are still options.“ (globalnews,

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