HARDISTY, Alta. – Located in east central Alberta, the Town of Hardisty is a small community. However, it plays an important role when it comes to oil storage and transportation.
“Tomorrow is another day,” Rick Fisher told Global News in reaction to the pipeline rejection by the U.S. president.
READ MORE: U.S. President Barack Obama rejects Keystone XL pipeline
Fisher is an area resident and owns a parts store in the community of 700 people.
“It would have been nice to see it go through,” Fisher added.
At the town office, there was disappointment, but the reality over the rejection settled in a while ago.
“I didn’t really have a surprise or anything because we kind of expected it,” said Ivan Lesmeister, a town councillor.
READ MORE: Alberta premier ‘disappointed’, ‘not surprised’ by Obama’s rejection of Keystone XL
Still, for years there was anticipation of the project going ahead with the economic spin-offs for the town; everything from accommodating temporary construction workers to talk of a TransCanada office with permanent staff.
“To us, it’s huge,” said Sandy Otto, the town’s Chief Administrative Officer. “Not thousands, but 60 is a lot in the communities around here for sure,” she added.
With the rejection of the project, the focus now shifts to Energy East and the role Hardisty can play in that pipeline.
“This is a huge oil hub in the area, so one project does not make the whole thing,” said Lesmeister.
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