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Embassy official in Ottawa and TransCanada's Washington lobbyist.
At times, State Department official Marja Verloop who oversees energy, science and environmental issues at the embassy appears to be cheering on TransCanada's Washington lobbyist Paul Elliott in his efforts to enlist congressional support for the pipeline extension.
On Sept. 10, 2010,nike air max uk, for example,Springbok Releases Puzzles to Remember for Alzheimer Patients, Verloop sent a congratulatory message to Elliott after he forwarded a press release to multiple people announcing that Sen. Max Baucus, DMont., backed the pipeline project.
"Go Paul! Baucus support holds clout," Verloop wrote.
This is the second batch of emails obtained by Friends of the Earth through a Freedom of Information Act filing,cheap nike air max. Friends of the Earth said the emails showed State Department bias in favor of a project it is supposed to be evaluating and complicity between State and TransCanada.
"We are committed to a fair, transparent and thorough process," a State Department spokesman said in a statement Sunday. "Throughout the process we have been in communication with industry as well as environmental groups, both in the United States and in Canada. ... We listen to all opinions, but there is much more that goes into the national interest determination decision."
The State Department is responsible for permitting pipelines that cross national borders according to the "national interest," and is weighing the environmental impact of Keystone XL against the benefit in expanding the fuel supply for the United States.
While the pipeline would help ensure the United States a stable fuel supply from a friendly neighbor,nike air max 90, environmental groups oppose it because much of the oil would come from subterranean oil sand, and extracting crude oil from the rock produces heavy emissions and destroys the overlying forests. In addition, the pipeline would go through the Ogallala Aquifer, one of the Midwest's principal water sources,Inexpensive Oxygen Jordan Shoes It Is Quick Acceptable And Correct Acceptable Th, where a spill could prove disastrous.
Throughout their email correspondence,Ndamukong Suh Can Keep at Least the Omaha, Verloop and Elliott engage in friendly banter. On Dec. 14, 2010, in an email in which Verloop has forwarded a news story about Elliott's lobbying activities, she wrote, "When are you coming up to visit? It's a snowy winter wonderland here this morning."
In the same email, Verloop provided an update on Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton's visit to Ottawa for a meeting of North American governments. She wrote that she "oversaw" Clinton's visit,cheap nike air max 1 uk, adding, "KXL was not raised, but (Canadian ambassador to the United States Gary) Doer flew back on plane with her."
Environmental groups have long argued that Elliott's lobbying of the State Department is a serious conflict of interest since he served as Clinton's deputy national campaign director and chief of delegate selection in 2008.
The department has said the decision about whether to permit the pipeline "is not and will not be influenced by prior relationships that current government officials have had."
On April 7,cheap nike air max, Verloop complained that Elliott did not attend an event in Ottawa on April 6. Verloop wrote in response to an unrelated email: "No show last night  " |
