Native American Tribes including the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe on Sept. 22 told the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that the environmental study on Dakota Access oil pipeline is biased and urged the Biden administration to bring in the U.S. Interior Department.
The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia revoked a key environmental permit for the largest pipeline out of the North Dakota oil basin last year and ordered the study.
The Tribes said on Sept. 22 they believe the process is currently designed to justify issuing a new permit in the same location and that the draft of the study does not take into account technical and cultural information that the Tribes have presented to the Corps.
"Our participation in the EIS (Environmental Impact Statement) process and review of the initial draft reveals that the Corps has fundamentally misunderstood the courts' directive and the requirements of the law," the Tribes said in the letter addressed to Jaime Pinkham, acting assistant secretary of the Army for Civil Works, on Sept. 22.
"The Administration must bring in the U.S. Department of the Interior as a co-equal cooperating agency with appropriate expertise to assist the Corps in centering Tribal impacts and concerns which motivated this EIS in the first place."
Dakota Access' operators earlier this week asked the U.S. Supreme Court to revisit whether the 570,000 barrel-per-day pipeline requires additional environmental review.
The pipeline entered service in 2017 following months of protests by environmentalists, Native American tribes and their supporters. Opponents said its construction destroyed sacred artifacts and posed a threat to Lake Oahe, a critical drinking supply, and the greater Missouri River.
Energy Transfer, which operates the line, has said it is safe.
Recommended Reading
OMS Energy Files for IPO, Reports Revenue Growth
2024-11-06 - Singapore-based OMS Energy, a wellhead system manufacturer, has not yet determined its price range and number of shares.
Quantum’s VanLoh: New ‘Wave’ of Private Equity Investment Unlikely
2024-10-10 - Private equity titan Wil VanLoh, founder of Quantum Capital Group, shares his perspective on the dearth of oil and gas exploration, family office and private equity funding limitations and where M&A is headed next.
Sheffield: E&Ps’ Capital Starvation Not All Bad, But M&A Needs Work
2024-10-04 - Bryan Sheffield, managing partner of Formentera Partners and founder of Parsley Energy, discussed E&P capital, M&A barriers and how longer laterals could spur a “growth mode” at Hart Energy’s Energy Capital Conference.
Exclusive: How E&Ps Yearning Capital can Stand Out to Family Offices
2024-10-15 - 3P Energy Capital’s Founder and Managing Partner Christina Kitchens shares insight on the “educational process” of operators looking at opportunities in the U.S. and how E&Ps looking for capital can interest family offices, in this Hart Energy Exclusive interview.
After BKV’s IPO, Is Market Open to More Public SMID Caps?
2024-10-03 - The market for new E&P and energy IPOs has been tepid since the COVID-19 pandemic. But investor appetite is growing for new small- and mid-sized energy IPOs, says Citigroup Managing Director Dylan Tornay.