[Editor's note: This story was updated from a previous version posted at 12:30 p.m. CT Feb. 13.]
A U.S. federal judge denied a request by Native American tribes seeking a halt to construction of the final link in the Dakota Access Pipeline on Feb. 13, the controversial project that has sparked months of protests from tribal activists seeking to halt the 1,170-mile line.
Judge James Boasberg of the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., at a hearing, rejected the request from the Standing Rock Sioux and Cheyenne River Sioux tribes, who had argued that the project will prevent them from practicing religious ceremonies at a lake they say is surrounded by sacred ground.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers last week granted a final easement to Energy Transfer Partners LP (NYSE: ETP), the company building the $3.8-billion Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL), after President Donald Trump issued an order to advance the pipeline days after he took office in January.
Lawyers for the Cheyenne River Sioux and the Standing Rock Sioux wanted Judge Boasberg to block construction with a temporary restraining order.
"We are contending that the waters of Lake Oahe are sacred to Cheyenne River and all of its members, and that the very presence of a pipeline, not only construction but possible oil flow through that pipeline, would obstruct the free exercise of our religious practices," Matthew Vogel, a legislative associate for the Cheyenne River Sioux, told reporters in a conference call ahead of the hearing.
The company only needs to build a final 1,100-ft (335-meter) connection in North Dakota under Lake Oahe, part of the Missouri River system, to complete the pipeline.
The line is set to run from oil fields in the Bakken Shale of North Dakota to the Midwest, and then to refineries along the Gulf of Mexico, could be operating by early May.
Chase Iron Eyes, a member of the Standing Rock Tribe, said in the call that the pipeline would also cause economic harm to Native Americans.
The tribes could be facing a difficult task in convincing Boasberg to grant the restraining order. Last September, he rejected a broad request by Native Americans to block the project. That ruling was superseded by the Obama administration, which delayed the line, seeking more environmental review.
Thousands of tribe members and environmental activists have protested the pipeline, setting up camps last year on Army Corps land in the North Dakota plains. In December, the Obama administration denied Energy Transfer's last-needed permit, but with Trump's stated support of the pipeline, that victory was short-lived for the Standing Rock Sioux.
The Army Corps has said it will close remaining camps on federal lands along the Cannonball River in North Dakota after Feb. 22.
Cleanup efforts continued in the main protest camp, located on federal land, over the weekend. Only a few hundred protesters remain, and crews have been removing tipis and yurts. The Standing Rock tribe has been asking protesters to leave.
Recommended Reading
Global Energy Watch: Corpus Christi Earns Designation as America's Top Energy Port
2024-02-06 - The Port of Corpus Christi began operations in 1926. Strategically located near major Texas oil and gas production, the port is now the U.S.’ largest energy export gateway, with the Permian Basin in particular a key beneficiary.
Biden Totters the US LNG Line Between Environment, Energy Security
2024-01-30 - Recent moves by U.S. President Joe Biden targeting the country’s LNG industry, which has a number of projects in the works, are an attempt to satisfy environmentalists ahead of the next upcoming presidential election.
Repsol Eyes Increasing Core US Upstream Business
2024-02-29 - Madrid-based Repsol SA will invest €$2.2 billion (US$2.38 billion) between 2024-2027 on its unconventional assets in the Marcellus and Eagle Ford as it focuses on increasing its core U.S. upstream business platform.
US Threatens to Not Renew Venezuelan Energy Sector License
2024-01-31 - The U.S. Department of State alerted Venezuela that it could decide not to renew General License No. 44 amid what Washington has labeled “anti-democratic actions.”
Vietnam Seeks Delicate Balance Among US, China, Russia
2024-02-08 - Ongoing U.S. tensions with China and Russia offer Vietnam an opportunity to boost economic ties with the former if American investors can steer past geopolitical smokescreens and destine funds for infrastructure, power and LNG projects all somewhat tied to Vietnam’s manufacturing sector.