Shortly after the inauguration of our nation’s 46th president, Joseph R. Biden, a flurry of executive orders was signed. In this wave of signed executive orders was the decision to rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement and to revoke the Keystone XL Pipeline permit.

In 2017, the Trump Administration took action intended to permit the Keystone XL pipeline’s completion. The pipeline, owned by TC Energy Corporation, runs oil from Alberta, Canada to refineries and oil distribution centers in the United States.

After the executive order was signed to revoke the Keystone XL pipeline’s permit, Marty Durbin, president of the U.S. Chamber’s Global Energy Institute issued the a statement in opposition to the Keystone XL pipeline order.

The Keystone XL Pipeline is significant to Ohio’s economy because much of the steel used in the construction comes from mills located in the buckeye state. Additionally, other manufactured goods needed for the construction of the pipeline will be sources from areas all around the United States, including our great state.

Clearly, the United States cannot afford to relinquish its hard-earned spot as the world’s largest producer of oil and natural gas, but this is exactly what is at risk with actions such as revoking the Keystone XL’s pipeline permit. As a state particularly well situated to benefit from several shale plays, Ohio is in a position to fuel an economic resurgence powered by affordable and reliable domestic sources of energy with many of these benefits already flowing to Ohio’s communities and workforce. Ohio would be particularly devastated by any federal or state efforts to reduce or stop oil and gas extraction and transportation activities.

In the summer of 2017, the Trump Administration announced the United States withdrawal from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s (UNFCCC) Paris Agreement. The Paris Agreement established a comprehensive agenda for international action on how to tackle climate change. Shortly after the Biden signed the executive order to rejoin, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce released a state applauding the Administration’s decision. The Ohio Chamber of Commerce is committed to ensuring a clean and safe environment now and into the future, and we are proud of the progress that our members have made toward this goal. We will continue to work in close cooperation with state and federal regulatory partners, however the right balance must be struck between economic growth and environmental protection.