Tepees stand in the Seven Council camp, one of three encampments that have grown on the banks of the Cannon Ball River over the last month with the objective of stopping construction of the Energy Transfer Partners’ Dakota Access oil pipeline near the Standing Rock Sioux reservation in Cannon Ball, N.D. September 7, 2016.
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The judge agreed saying the Army Corps of Engineers “gave the Tribe a reasonable and good-faith opportunity to identify sites of importance to it”.
The Great Plains Tribal Chairman’s Association asked U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch on Thursday to send federal monitors to the protest site, alleging racial profiling and other transgressions are happening. “Today, three federal agencies announced the significant decision to respect tribal sovereignty and stop construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline on Army Corps land”. The tribe also says ancient sites have been disturbed during construction.
Energy Transfer Partners officials did not return phone calls or emails from The Associated Press seeking comment.
A federal judge Friday denied a Native American tribe’s request for a temporary restraining order to halt construction on the Dakota Access Pipeline, further fueling an already volatile battle over the controversial project.
Almost 40 have been arrested as the protest has grown size, including Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Chairman David Archambault II.
U.S. District Judge James Boasberg said in a 58-page opinion issued Friday that he wouldn’t grant an injunction sought by the tribe because he didn’t agree that the federal government failed to consult with the tribe as required by law and that the pipeline would cause irreparable harm to the tribe’s heritage.
The president of the North Dakota Petroleum Council said he was disappointed with the government’s decision to intervene and called it “flagrant overreach” that will result in more oil being moved by trucks and trains.
The Obama administration said it would momentarily stop the construction of a hotly disputed North Dakota oil pipeline, potentially gifting protesters a victory shortly after suffering a debilitating court loss.
At the state Capitol, pipeline protesters were happy to learn about federal authorities recommending that construction be halted.
“Protesters physically assaulted private security officers hired by Dakota Access Pipeline”.
President Barack Obama said Friday that construction on the almost 2,000-mile pipeline would be shelved until the government can determine the effects it will have on the environment. Judith LeBlanc, a member of the Caddo Nation in Oklahoma and director of the New York-based Native Organizers Alliance, said before the decision that she expected the protest to remain peaceful. People came from as far as NY and Alaska, some bringing their families and children.
It took months of fierce resistance, thousands camped out in protest, dozens of arrests, and a brutal encounter with attack dogs, but the tribal fight against the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) has emerged as a national moment of truth for the political establishment, as well as the hundreds of thousands who have voiced support for the Standing Rock Sioux in this pivotal moment. Authorities say some protesters are armed with hatchets and knives, and Saturday’s protest injured guards and dogs. We need to to permanently protect our sacred sites and our water.
Hall said she was especially excited to see young people drumming and standing up to speak to the assembled crowd.
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Therefore, this fall, we will invite tribes to formal, government-to-government consultations on two questions: (1) within the existing statutory framework, what should the federal government do to better ensure meaningful tribal input into infrastructure-related reviews and decisions and the protection of tribal lands, resources, and treaty rights; and (2) should new legislation be proposed to Congress to alter that statutory framework and promote those goals.
