The statement went on to say that no construction on the Dakota Access pipeline will be authorized until it can be determined whether there need be reconsideration of any of previous decisions regarding the Lake Oahe site under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) or other federal laws. Our original post appears below.
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The proposed Dakota Access pipeline project would transport crude oil from North Dakota through South Dakota, Iowa, and Illinois to an existing oil terminus near Patoka, Illinois.
“It’s all about environmental justice”.
Over 200 Native American groups have opposed to the Dakota Access pipeline.
A journalist who captured footage of North Dakota pipeline protesters being confronted by private security officers and guard dogs has been charged with trespassing.
The project is due to pass near lands that are sacred to members of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in the rural state of North Dakota. “Therefore, construction of the pipeline on Army Corps land bordering or under Lake Oahe will not go forward at this time”, read the joint statement.
The judge’s decision acknowledged that an argument based on environmental harm-such as polluting the drinking water of millions-would have been stronger than the case that was made, which “asserts only that pipeline-construction activities-specifically, the grading and clearing of land-will cause irreparable injury to historic or cultural properties of great significance”.
The ruling said Dakota Access hired professional archaeologists to survey the entire route through the Dakotas and much of Iowa and IL for cultural resources.
“The way Indian Country came together to support Standing Rock has really been powerful”, he said. Tribal leaders say the pipeline will destroy sacred sites and threatens the reservation’s water supply.
The fight has drawn thousands of Native Americans and activists to protest the project, making for intense media coverage.
Grijalva on Sunday will meet with Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Chairman Dave Archambault II and visit and tour the Standing Rock Sioux camp.
The Army Corps of Engineers, Department of Interior and Department of Justice are calling for a review of the current laws and regulations with tribes and future projects.
“It’s very encouraging to see them step forward again, and we hope this marks a turning point in how our federal government consults with Tribal Nations, and with the farmers and landowners whose livelihoods are threatened by these massive fossil fuel infrastructure projects”, he said in a statement.
McCown, who led the Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration under President George W. Bush, said the Obama administration’s move was an indefensible “knee-jerk reaction” to protests.
Ron Ness says the recommendation from three federal agencies to postpone part of the project is “flagrant overreach” by the government and the Obama Administration and will result in more trucks and rail cars moving oil.
On Sept. 3, private security guards working for the Dakota Access pipeline company sprayed mace directly into people’s faces and released dogs without warning on the actively demonstrating, unarmed land and water protectors.
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Dakota Access LLC’s parent company, Energy Transfer Partners, has not responded to repeated requests for comment from DeSmog.
