200 arrested at anti-Keystone protests

Hundreds of students were arrested in front of the White House this weekend as they protested the proposed Keystone XL pipeline, the Huffington Post reported.

The protesters, mostly students, urged the Obama administration to not approve TransCanada’s $5.4 billion pipeline, which would transport western Canada’s oil sands crude to the US. The White House’s decision is expected over the next few months.

Earlier this month a study from the US State Department determined that Keystone XL is unlikely to significantly increase production at Alberta’s oil sands and therefore would not be a major contributor to CO2 emissions.

According to the Guardian, around 200 protesters strapped themselves to the White House’s gates on Sunday and were arrested.

“The action this morning began up at Georgetown University, where last summer President Obama pledged that he would only approve the Keystone XL pipeline if it didn’t significantly increase greenhouse gas emissions,” Jamie Henn wrote for the Huffington Post, adding that this will “likely be the largest act of youth civil disobedience at the White House in a generation.”

One activist Tweeted these images:

 

 

Image featured on homepage from November 2011 by tarsandsaction