(Editor’s note: This just came out 4 minutes ago Friday 5:19 PM EST September 9, 2016)
The Dakota Access pipeline will be 1,172-miles and will run from North Dakota and South Dakota into Iowa and Illinois, transporting about 470,000 barrels of crude oil every day from production areas in North Dakota’s Bakken and Three Forks production areas through South Dakota, Iowa and into Illinois. It will do this with the help of about 8,000 new employees (eight thousand?!).
Conflict over the pipeline began in earnest last week when private security workers for the Texas-based Dakota Access pipeline company clashed with protesters at the North Dakota construction site. Workers for Dakota Access (a company many think are corrupt) let their dogs loose on the Native Americans and one child was bitten, along with several adults.
In its lawsuit, the tribe argues that the Corps of Engineers failed to adequately consult it before granting permits that allowed construction of the pipeline. But the pipeline company and the Corps argue in court documents that they followed a standard review process.
On Friday, Judge James Boasberg of the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., denied the tribe’s request to temporarily block construction of the four-state pipeline because he didn’t believe there was enough evidence to show that the pipeline would harm the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe (we disagree and think there is more than enough evidence to prove potential harm).
From the article:
“Aware of the indignities visited upon the Tribe over the last centuries, the Court scrutinizes the permitting process here with particular care,” Boasberg wrote. “Having done so, the Court must nonetheless conclude that the Tribe has not demonstrated that an injunction is warranted here.” A status conference for the case is scheduled for Sept. 16.
However, the U.S. Justice Department stepped in and announced steps to protect- for now- a lake along the construction route (that’s not enough). The Corps of Engineers will now temporarily halt authorization for construction of the pipeline around Lake Oahe and review its previous decisions regarding this large reservoir. The tribe is wasting no time during the stay they’ve been granted:
“The federal court ruled against the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe today but, in a stunning move, three federal agencies have blocked the pipeline at Lake Oahe pending a thorough review and reconsideration of the process,” the tribe said in a statement on its Facebook page
“This federal statement is a game changer for the Tribe and we are acting immediately on our legal options, including filing an appeal and a temporary injunction to force [Dakota Access] to stop construction,” the statement continued.”
The pipeline is supposed to cross directly underneath Lake Oahe, which is just upstream from the tribe’s reservation, and is both environmentally and culturally important to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. And honestly, after everything our government has done to these people, this is enough. This case just further highlights the fact that we still do not take them and their SOVEREIGN state status into account when we work on infrastructure projects.
From the ABC article:
“The Tribe relies on the waters of Lake Oahe for drinking water, irrigation, fishing, and recreation, and to carry out cultural and religious practices. The public water supply for the Tribe, which provides drinking water for thousands of people, is located a few miles downstream of the proposed pipeline crossing route.”
“Additionally, the cultural and religious significance of these waters cannot be overstated,” the tribe states in its court complaint. “Construction of the pipeline … and building and burying the pipeline, would destroy burial grounds, sacred sites, and historically significant areas on either side of Lake Oahe,” the complaint states.
Standing Rock Tribe Chairman David Archambault II has called for peace, regardless of the outcome, “We call upon all water protectors to greet any decision with peace and order. Even if the outcome of the court’s ruling is not in our favor, we will continue to explore every lawful option and fight against the construction of the pipeline. Any act of violence hurts our cause and is not welcome here.”
Once we stop our dependency on oil we’ll provide far more than 8,000 jobs by using renewable and sustainable energy sources that will make it so you’ll never pay for gas again nor would you pay an electric or gas bill.
Big oil has been squashing this technology for many decades at the expense of the people, pets, animals and planet: Mother Earth.
