“I hereby grant permission, subject to the conditions herein set forth, to TransCanada Keystone Pipeline… to construct, connect, operate, and maintain pipeline facilities at the international border of the United States and Canada at Phillips County, Montana, for the import of oil from Canada to the United States”, Trump said in a permit released by the White House.
READ MORE: US Court Orders Additional Environmental Review of Keystone Pipeline — Reports
Two days earlier, on Wednesday, North Dakota Governor Kristi Noem signed two new laws to try and prevent more demonstrations against the Dakota Access Pipeline that is to be part of the Keystone project.
Trump said last year that he approved the Keystone XL pipeline project, which he said is ready to start and will create some 48,000 jobs. The 1,179-mile pipeline would carry up to 830,000 barrels of crude oil per day from the Canadian province of Alberta to the US state of Nebraska and to the oil refineries on the Texas Gulf Coast.
Various environmental groups and Native American tribes have repeatedly protested against the project, which traverses sacred tribal lands and could pollute local waters.
READ MORE: Native American Tribes Set to Continue Fight Against Keystone XL Pipeline