Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Demand Transparency on DAPL

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe has withdrawn as a cooperating agency in the environmental assessment of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL). The key reason is the lack of transparency from the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the pipeline operator, Energy Transfer. Chairman of the Great Plains Tribal Water Alliance and Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Water Department Administrator, Doug Crow Ghost, has been leading this effort to hold both the USACE and Energy Transfer accountable for the threats this oil pipeline poses to the Tribe’s water supply at Lake Oahe. 

Energy Transfer operates the controversial pipeline sending oil from the Bakken Shale in North Dakota underneath Lake Oahe. The Dakota Access Pipeline continues to operate despite lacking a comprehensive Environmental Impact Study (EIS), required by the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA), that would account for disaster responses in the event of an oil spill. The threat of an oil spill is a primary concern as Lake Oahe is the Tribe’s only source of fresh water. Additionally, the USACE fluctuates water levels to deal with rapidly changing conditions including flood stage levels during the 2019 bomb cyclone and the current pervasive drought covering the Upper Missouri River Basin. These fluctuating water levels pose serious threats to the stability and reliability of the pipeline. In 2021, the North Dakota oil and gas industry reported nearly 500 spills as this Grist news story shows. Climate change impacts will continue to exacerbate the extreme conditions in the area making the threat of oil spills more likely and more impactful.

For more information about Standing Rock Sioux Tribe withdrawing as a cooperating agency check out this article from Mongabay.