Court Rejects Rights of Standing Rock Sioux in Favor of Dakota Access #Pipeline #StandingRock

Sunday evening, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rejected the Standing Rock Sioux tribe’s request for an injunction to halt construction on the Dakota Access pipeline. Energy Transfer, the company behind the pipeline, may now continue construction everywhere except Lake Oahe and its shorelines, despite the project cutting through land of significant historical importance to the Standing Rock Sioux. The Obama administration has called for construction on 40 miles surrounding the lake to be voluntarily halted.The court now takes the Tribe’s request to issue a broader injunction on construction of the pipeline under consideration.

In response, Sierra Club Director of Beyond Dirty Fuels campaign Lena Moffitt released the following statement:

“The Standing Rock Sioux, just like all Americans, deserve to have their history and heritage protected and preserved. The Dakota Access pipeline is an affront to Standing Rock’s and all Native American’s history, and the courts should halt construction immediately.

“Regardless of the court’s failure to act in accordance with the National Historic Preservation Act, the Obama administration should reject the final permits necessary for this prevent this dirty and dangerous pipeline. It’s construction is a direct threat to the Standing Rock Sioux’s history and heritage and our clean air and water.