Dakota Access pipeline work to resume near large protest
ST. ANTHONY, N.D. — Construction on the four-state Dakota Access pipeline resumed Tuesday on private land in North Dakota that’s near a camp where thousands of protesters supporting tribal rights have gathered for months.
Energy Transfer Partners resumed digging trenches and laying pipe, Morton County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Rob Keller said, a move that comes in light of Sunday’s federal appeals court ruling that allowed construction to resume within 20 miles of Lake Oahe.
Energy Transfer Partners still needs approval from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to work on a separate parcel of federal land bordering and under Lake Oahe, which the agency manages.
The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe wants construction halted because of concerns about potential contamination of its water supply and says the pipeline will encroach on tribal burial sites and other cultural artifacts.
Dozens have been arrested at construction sites, including actress Shailene Woodley and Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein.