INTRODUCTIONAlmost every country in our world today, including the United States, is extremely dependent on oil and how much oil we can get from it. Wars have broken out between countries vying for control of this precious natural resource. The United States as a whole has attempted to reduce its dependence on foreign oil and has had some success, notably with the discovery of the Bakken Formation and projects like the Keystone Pipeline. Projects like the Keystone Pipeline are important because they will allow us to transport more oil than we could transport on rail cars and grant greater access to oil reserves in the United States and Canada. The Keystone Pipeline itself is an oil pipeline that runs from the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin in Alberta, Canada to refineries in the United States. These refineries are located in three different primary locations: Steele City, Nebraska, Wood River and Patoka, Illinois and refineries located on the Texas Gulf Coast. The pipeline carries three different types of oil which are synthetic crude and diluted bitumen, as well as a light crude oil. Light crude oil comes from the Bakken formation located in North Dakota and Montana while synthetic crude and diluted bitumen come from the oil sands of Canada. There are already three phases of the pipeline in operation and a proposed fourth phase that has not yet been built. The most recent proposed phase sparked mixed feelings. Many industrial companies want the new phase of the pipeline to be completed, as many believe it would be very beneficial for almost everyone. One of the biggest benefits of building a new section of pipeline would be the large number of jobs it would create. The...middle of the document......also includes some maps to help better demonstrate where each part of the pipeline is located. PHASE 1 The first phase of the Keystone Pipeline was the first part of the project to be proposed and constructed and it is also by far the longest. It extends from Hardisty, Alberta to refineries in the United States located in Wood River and Pakota, Illinois. The U.S. segment is 1,379 miles long and the Canadian segment is 768 miles, bringing the total to 2,147 miles of pipeline. The first phase was operational in June 2010. PHASE 2Phase two of the pipeline is relatively short compared to the rest of the project as it is only 291 miles long. The primary goal of the second phase was to move oil from Steele City, Nebraska, through Kansas and finally to Cushing, Oklahoma. Construction of the second phase was completed in February 2011.