Native American tribes took their fight to Washington on Thursday, Sept. 22, to stop development of a $3.7 billion oil pipeline, as Democrats in the U.S. Congress urged the federal government to scrap construction permits and reconsider the project.
Energy Transfer Partners, the Dallas-based company financing the $3.7 billion pipeline that would transport 470,000 barrels of oil a day across four states from North Dakota to IL, this week purchased the roughly 9,000 acre Cannon Ball ranch, according to a deed filed with the Morton County Recorder's Office.
The majority of the pipeline's route travels across privately-held land and neither Lake Oahe or the land abutting it are owned or controlled by a Native American group.
Hosted by the UI Native American Student Association, Thursday's rally included speeches from UI students and professors, as well as representatives of local Native American nations.
And he said the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe has become "the symbol for many in a way that has brought Indian Country together".
Community members stood across the street from Schenectady County Community College waving signs at passing cars to protest the construction of an oil pipeline in North Dakota.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled to temporarily halt construction of the pipeline near the Standing Rock reservation pending a new appeal by the tribe in federal court.
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This summer, opposition to a 1,170-mile oil pipeline that would transport 470,000 barrels of oil a day from the Bakken oil fields in North Dakota to other pipelines in IL, reached a tipping point. He urged the administration of President Barack Obama to reject expanding the Dakota Access pipeline like they did the Keystone XL pipeline in 2015.
Dalrymple said he's been in contact with the Corps, White House, U.S. Department of Justice, Department of Interior and the state's congressional delegation but is still waiting to hear if they plan to help financially or with in-kind services.
Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Chairman David Archambault II is scheduled to give tribal leaders an update on the pipeline during a "preparatory meeting" on Sunday morning.
"What has happened here and the impact of this pipeline ... is unacceptable", Asbridge said. Some of the concerns the tribe has with the project are the threats to their water source and the destruction of sacred sites.
The tribe shared the letter on its Sacred Stone Camp Facebook page, calling it "an incredible act of solidarity". In its examination, Reuters tallied leaks in the past six years along dedicated onshore crude oil lines and excluded systems that carry natural gas and refined products.
Energy Transfer did not respond to a request for comment.
"Like the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, our tribe's most sacred site, the Snoqualmie Falls, is endangered by destructive development", said De Los Angeles.
