Since I pay shockingly little attention to the whole Keystone Pipeline imbroglio, I know very little about oil pipelines. I know that oil moves through them, that's about it. Would the KXL be above ground or below? Combination? How deep, if buried? I would imagine that it has to be underground at least partially, it can't be barren farmland all the way from Alberta to Nebraska, though it mostly is for sure.
Do they have to go out and buy the land rights from each and every land owner for 1200 miles to install it under their land, (or on top of)? What if someone says no? Could one hold-out snafu the entire thing?
Sorry for the (probably) dumb questions, and yes, I'm aware that there are millions of miles of pipeline already installed in the U.S., so these are general questions not only for the KXL, other than that is the only big oil pipeline project at the moment.
Also, I assume that there are large shut-off valves every so many miles, (how many), in order to stop the flow if there is a leak? Is that what the small number of permanent jobs created by its construction include? Sort of night watchmen who will sleep for the next 30 years unless it bursts and they have to man the switch/valve?
Like I said, I know nothing about these things. The questions are serious, if dumb. TIA.
