Oil to flow through Dakota Access Pipeline with latest ruling

Monday, March 20, 2017

A US court of appeals has denied a request on Saturday, from two Native American tribes, for an “emergency” order against the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) oil project.

Judge Patricia Millett refused the challenge to an earlier ruling by US district judge James E. Boasberg. According to the appeals court, the Standing Rock and Cheyenne River Sioux tribes had not satisfied the “stringent requirements for issuance of an injunction pending appeal.”

The last-minute request would have stopped the construction of the pipeline and halted any oil flow until the resolution of the case. Judge Boasberg, who made the initial ruling, said that the company would be “substantially harmed” by any delays.

This decision comes just days before the developer, Energy Transfer Partners (ETP), says oil could soon be flowing through the pipeline. A recent status report from the company, anticipated oil could be introduced into the final stretch, under Lake Oahe, between Monday, March 20 and Wednesday, March 22. Protesters fear the pipeline could harm the tribe’s water supply and their ability to observe their religious traditions, which are reliant on clean water. ETP disputes these claims.

The Standing Rock administration released a Questions & Answers on Thursday with the tribe’s chairman David Archambault II who asserted the importance of united and continued opposition to the DAPL. “We are committed to fighting this battle. We remain hopeful that everyone who stood with us will continue these fights,” he said.

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