A federal judge on Friday refused to continue blocking permits for a controversial pipeline across Native American land in North Dakota, the scene of a tense standoff that has attracted hundreds of tribes from across the country.
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Attorney Jan Hasselman with the environmental group Earthjustice, who filed the lawsuit on the tribe’s behalf, said earlier this week any such decision would be challenged.
Arres said his own tribe reached a settlement with the federal government over water rights about a decade ago, “so we know the struggle”.
Fears in the encampment centered on potential violence after Boasberg’s ruling. It held steady, however, after the US government moved to halt work on the pipeline.
On its website, Energy Transfer Partners said the pipeline will carry around 470,000 barrels of oil per day from North Dakota to IL.
District Judge Boasberg found that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers had complied with the law in approving permits for the pipeline and that the tribe had not demonstrated that “irreparable harm will ensure”.
“Our hearts are full, this an historic day for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and for tribes across the nation”, tribal chairman Dave Archambault II said in a statement.
A judge on Friday had denied the Standing Rock Sioux tribe’s attempt to halt the construction of the Dakota Access oil pipeline near its North Dakota reservation.
The tribe says the pipeline violates several federal laws, including the National Historic Preservation Act. More than 1,000 protesters had gathered at the site on private land near the sprawling Standing Rock Reservation.
“These kinds of things happen when people don’t have a voice”, Sarandon said, referring to the government’s decision to fast-track the project. The developer, Dallas-based Energy Transfer Partners, says modern technology allows quick detection of leaks.
North Dakota Gov. John Dalrymple authorized a restricted emergency declaration last month, making state resources available to manage safety amid ongoing protests.
The confrontation last weekend between protesters and private security guards left some guards injured.
Tribal historian LaDonna Brave Bull Allard said after the ruling that it gives her “a great amount of grief”.
That’s according to the ruling that was made Friday afternoon.
The tribe has 15,000 members in the United States including as many as 8,000 in North and South Dakota.
The pipeline will cost $3.7 billion and pass through four states, nearing lands consecrated by members of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe.
The complaint says the pipeline route passes through the tribe’s treaty territory, aboriginal title lands and areas of cultural and spiritual importance.
Judith LeBlanc is director of the New York-based Native Organizers Alliance.
While this is not a flawless solution, it could be a jumping-off point for important and meaningful conversations on how the federal government can take the lead in protecting the interests of Native Americans, starting with the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and the DAPL. People came from as far as NY and Alaska, some bringing their families and children, and hundreds of tribal flags dotted the camp, along with American flags flown upside-down in protest.
The pipeline company and the Corps argue in court documents that they followed a standard review process.
The tribe responded on Facebook to the voluntary stoppage, saying in part, “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 DAPL to stop construction”.
Here’s a look at some key points from U.S. District Judge James Boasberg’s 58-page opinion: — KEY QUOTE “This Court does not lightly countenance any depredation of lands that hold significance to the Standing Rock Sioux”.
Stein defended her actions to the Chicago Tribune (http://trib.in/2cfvzAg ) Thursday during a campaign stop in Chicago.
The Standing Rock Sioux sued in July.
A major concern for the tribe was the fear than an oil spill would contaminate drinking water since the pipeline would run beneath a lake near the tribe’s reservation.
The $3.8 billion pipeline is to carry oil from western North Dakota to IL.
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In anticipation of possible protests following the ruling, the North Dakota governor had called upon the state’s National Guard to help law enforcement, the state National Guard said in a statement Friday.
