Nebraska's governor on Tuesday signed into law new rules that will ensure that a controversial US-Canada pipeline will be rerouted away from the state's sensitive wetlands, a spokeswoman said.

Pipeline operator TransCanada Corp agreed last week to reroute the Keystone XL pipeline project pipeline after Nebraska lawmakers introduced the legislation in a special session.

The move came shortly after President Barack Obama's administration delayed the project, saying it needed more time to assess the pipeline's environmental implications and warning that a final decision may not come until 2013.

Environmental activists fear an accident along the 1,700-mile (2,700-kilometer) pipeline would be disastrous for aquifers in central US Great Plains states.

Others oppose the $13 billion project because exploiting the tar sands requires energy that generates a large volume of greenhouse gases.

Nebraska Governor Dave Heinenman said he hopes the project can move forward as quickly as possible now that it no longer threatens the state's Sand Hills area, which features important wetlands and a sensitive ecosystem.

"The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality will immediately go to work on this project," he said.

"This will be their top priority until this project is complete."

The two bills signed into law Tuesday establish a new regulatory framework for pipeline construction in Nebraska that would include public consultations and state-led environmental reviews.