The US Army Corps of Engineers has rejected an easement for the Dakota Access Pipeline, saying it could contaminate water supplies. The move is seen as a victory for Native Americans and activists protesting the project.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/J. Watson
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Native Americans score victory in Dakota pipeline row
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The United States Army Corps of Engineers has refused to grant an easement for the Dakota Access pipeline, which was originally slated to run under Lake Oahe, a Missouri River reservoir where construction has been halted due to protests.
"The Army will not grant an easement to cross Lake Oahe at the proposed location based on the current record," a statement from the US Army said Sunday.
The decision is seen as a victory for Native Americans and climate activists, who claim the pipeline would threaten a local water source and damage sacred land.
The corps has said it will investigate the environmental impact of the 1,172-mile (1,885-kilometer) pipeline that would stretch across the states of North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa and Illinois and is expected to cost $3.8 billion (3.6 billion euros).
"The corps will be undertaking an environmental impact statement to look at possible alternative routes," said Dave Archambault II, chairman of the local tribe Standing Rock Sioux, in a statement.
"Although we have had continuing discussion and exchanges of new information with the Standing Rock Sioux and Dakota Access, it's clear that there's more work to do," said Jo-Ellen Darcy, the US Army's assistant secretary for civil works.
US Secretary for the Interior Sally Jewell said the decision "underscores that tribal rights…are essential components of the analysis" for the environmental impact.
'Serious mistake'
Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners LP, which owns the Dakota Access Pipeline, did not immediately comment after the decision.
However, supporters of the pipeline construction, including North Dakota Governor Jack Dalrymple, were not pleased with the announcement. Dalrymple called the decision a "serious mistake" that "prolongs the dangerous situation" of several hundred protesters who are camped out in the frigid winter weather. North Dakota Congressman Kevin Cramer said the decision sent "a very chilling signal" for the future of infrastructure in the US.
The federal government has ordered protesters to leave the main encampment, which is on land owned by the Army Corps of Engineers. Protesters plan to hold their ground, and authorities have said they will not remove protesters by force.
Native American tribe clashes with police in Dakota oil pipeline protests
In the latest clash in the US state of North Dakota, police used pepper spray and rubber bullets to disperse protesters. The local Standing Rock Sioux tribe has been fighting the pipeline's construction since 2014.
Image: Reuters/S. Keith
The pipeline advances
A vehicle passes by pipes intended for use in the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline. The conduit is meant to bring up to 570,000 barrels of crude oil daily from fracking fields in North Dakota to Illinois, passing through territory that historically has belonged to Native Americans.
Image: Reuters/J. Morgan
Anger from the local Sioux
The Standing Rock Sioux tribe has opposed the project since its proposal in 2014. Though the pipeline will not cross into Sioux territory, tribal leaders argue it will disturb historical burial grounds and could endanger the tribe's source of water, the Missouri River, under which the pipeline is supposed to pass. The company building the pipeline claims it has taken precautions against this.
Image: Reuters/S. Keith
Defiance
A man faces police across the Cantapeta Creek outside the Standing Rock Reservation near the town of Cannon Ball, North Dakota, where construction of the pipeline is underway.
Image: Reuters/S. Keith
Pipeline protests
Opponents of a new oil pipeline near the Standing Rock Indian Reservation gathered outside Cannon Ball, North Dakota, on November 2, 2016
Confrontation at Cantapeta Creek
A police officer uses pepper spray against protesters standing in Cantapeta Creek near the pipeline construction site. The resistance of the local tribe has gained international attention in recent weeks and the number of protesters has swelled. Even celebrities Mark Ruffalo and civil rights activist Jesse Jackson have joined in.
Image: Reuters/J. Patinkin
Relief for the eyes
A protester is treated with pepper spray antidote after a confrontation with the police. Tribal leaders allege that police have engaged in excessive force against protesters, leading the UN to investigate possible human rights abuses.
Image: Reuters/S. Keith
Consolation
After clashing with the police in Cantapeta Creek a young woman is consoled by a fellow protester.
Image: Reuters/J. Patinkin
Too late to make a change?
An elderly protester raises her arm during demonstrations against the pipeline. On November 1, US President Barack Obama said that the federal government is considering re-routing the pipeline in response to opposition.
