A federal judge has granted the Standing Rock Sioux tribe’s request to temporarily stop work on a portion of the Dakota Access Pipeline to safeguard cultural sites in North Dakota.
Associated Press reports, “U.S. District Judge James Boasberg said Tuesday that work will temporarily stop between State Highway 1806 and 20 miles east of Lake Oahe, but that work will continue west of the highway because he believes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lacks jurisdiction on private land.”
This temporary work stoppage is different than the tribe’s broader push that challenges federal regulators’ decision to grant permits to the operators of the four-state pipeline. Boasberg said he expects to issue a full opinion on that lawsuit by the end of Friday.
Attorneys for Energy Transfer Partners filed court documents Tuesday morning denying that workers have destroyed any cultural sites.
An attorney for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe says it is grateful that work will be temporarily stopped.
The tribe requested the stoppage after a weekend confrontation between protesters and construction workers near Lake Oahe due to workers bulldozing sites that attorney Jan Hasselman said were “of great historic and cultural significance to the tribe.” During the confrontation, private security forces hired by Energy Transfer Partners used dogs and pepper spray to assault protesters.
Hasselman said Tuesday that the tribe was “disappointed that some of the important sacred sites that we had found and provided evidence for will not be protected.”
Associated press also reports, “Late Tuesday afternoon, authorities say law enforcement officers responding to protesters at a Dakota Access Pipeline construction area on private property in North Dakota pulled back because they determined it wasn’t safe to respond.”
Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier says the primary goal is public safety, including for law enforcement. Authorities also are looking into a report of a drone flying overhead.
Authorities say a group of between 150 and 200 protesters gathered at the construction area Tuesday morning. Officials say two protesters were secured to heavy equipment.
While this is definitely a win for the protesters trying to defend their sacred sites, Friday is when we expect to hear the ruling from Boasberg regarding the federal regulator’s decision to grant permits for the pipeline. For those that want to support the efforts of these people trying to protect the sacred land and water, you can show up to protest and you can also donate to the cause.
(Article by Jeremiah Jones)
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