Stay tuned for our full season of episodes about the Keystone XL Pipeline in Montana. In the meantime, check out our weekly news updates called Oil & Water Relay, posted on our website and our blog.

This week, we discuss the ongoing lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union of Montana (ACLU MT) against two state agencies: Montana Disaster and Emergency Services and Montana Division of Criminal Investigation. ACLU MT charges that the agencies have illegally withheld documents pertaining to the preparations of law enforcement officers over potential Keystone XL pipeline protests in Montana, should construction of the pipeline continue. Find the full text of the lawsuit at:

https://www.aclumontana.org/en/cases/aclu-montana-v-mt-des-and-mt-dci

We also discuss the upcoming public comment meeting held by the Montana Department of Environmental Quality about Keystone XL's permit application regarding 201 water crossings in Montana. This is a public meeting and attendees may speak on the record. The meeting will be held at 4PM on Zoom. You can register at this link:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/public-hearing-on-issuing-water-quality-certification-for-keystone-xl-tickets-122268188443

And the article from the Glasgow Currier is here:

https://www.glasgowcourier.com/story/2020/10/07/calendar/deq-seeks-public-comment-on-kxl-water-cert/9239.html

Oil & Water Relay is created and produced by Joe Loviska and Raichle Dunkeld. Editing by Raichle Dunkeld. Music this episode by Alexei Desmarais. Oil & Water Relay is a production of The Systems Zoo, an educational collaborative making high quality media for systems thinkers. Find us at www.oilandwaterpod.com

In today's episode, we depart from the usual format to highlight the voices of Montanans making public comments at the recent Montana Department of Environmental Quality meeting about the Section 401 water crossing permit for Keystone XL.

The permit under consideration will determine whether the Keystone XL pipeline meets water quality standards under section 401 of the the federal Clean Water Act. This is a state-level consideration. The 3-hour public comment meeting was held on November 16. And as you will hear, not a single commenter spoke out in favor of granting the permit for KXL.

For more information on this permitting process, check the MT DEQ website at: https://deq.mt.gov/DEQAdmin/mfs/keystonexl/keystonexlcomprehensive

Music this episode by Alexei Desmarais. Special thanks to the staff of the Montana DEQ offices, in particular to Moira Davins and Keenan Storrar. Special thanks also to all of the commenters who bravely put their voices to the public record. This is what democracy looks like.