ELI5-What is the pipeline issue everybody keeps talking about? What are both sides of the issue?

What I was taught in my university environmental studies classes is that pipelines are actually safer and better for the environment than trains, trucks, etc. Less likely to spill, less dangerous spills (smaller/more easily controlled etc)

But take that with a grain of salt, because the location you build the pipeline is also important. Obviously a pipeline next to a lake full of endangered species will be more high risk than a railroad that runs though the middle of a whole lotta nothing.

So I’m pro-pipeline but anti-putting pipelines in stupid places.

And apparently this is a really rare viewpoint since I’ve never seen it anywhere on Reddit? Everyone else seems to want to pick a side and either be 100% for all oil or 100% against all oil. Why treat such a complex issue as a black and white problem?

/r/Edmonton Thread Parent