Tribe Sues to Shut Dakota Pipeline as Company Plans to Double Capacity

"Several of the Democrats running for president are now pledging to revoke permits for both the Dakota Access and Keystone XL oil pipelines if elected."

"The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe is asking a judge to throw out a federal permit for the Dakota Access oil pipeline, arguing that the government shut the tribe out of a court-ordered second environmental review and ignored its concerns.

The challenge comes as Energy Transfer, the company behind the pipeline, is now seeking to double how much oil the pipeline can carry. The Dakota Access pipeline (DAPL) passes under the Missouri River, the tribe's water supply, just upstream from the Standing Rock Reservation.

The Army Corps of Engineers "never engaged with the Tribe or its technical experts, shared critical information, or responded to the Tribe's concerns," the tribe writes in a legal motion filed Friday in federal court. "The result is an irretrievably flawed decision, developed through a process that fell far short of legal standards. With DAPL's proposal to double the flow of the pipeline, the unexamined risks to the Tribe continue to grow.""

Phil McKenna reports for InsideClimate News August 20, 2019.

Source: InsideClimate News, 08/20/2019