Schatz critical of pipeline move

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) blasted President Donald Trump’s decision Tuesday to take action today to advance the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines.

“The Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines are simply not in our national interest,” Schatz said. “While countries like China and Germany continue to make progress in their transition away from the dirty energy of the past, this action will roll back the progress we have made.”

Schatz said encouraging the production of the oil, which includes Canadian tar sands — considered one of the dirtiest fuels in the world — is a step backward.

“Climate change is the challenge of our generation, and we need to be moving forward with policies to support clean energy,” he said.