Investigation finds no conflict in State Dept. contractor's favorable review of Keystone pipeline

The controversial Keystone XL pipeline got a boost Wednesday after the State Department's inspector general concluded that a department contractor who prepared an environmental analysis of the pipeline "did not violate conflict-of-interest rules, even though the contractor had previously done work for TransCanada, the company seeking to build the pipeline," Coral Davenport reports for the New York Times. (Washington Post graphic; best we've seen)

"The results of the investigation could further pave the way for the Obama administration to approve the 1,700-mile, $5.4 billion pipeline, which would move oil from forest in Alberta, Canada, to the Gulf Coast," Davenport writes. "The pipeline has become a critical cause to environmentalists, who view President Obama’s ultimate decision as a reflection of his commitment to fight climate change. They have rallied, protested and been arrested by the thousands in an effort to pressure him to reject the project." (Read more)

Last week a Nebraska court invalidated Republican Gov. Dave Heineman's endorsement of legislation to allow the pipeline to cross part of the state.