US court lifts construction freeze on Dakota pipeline

OREANDA-NEWS. October 11, 2016. A federal appeals court yesterday dissolved an injunction that blocked construction on part of the 470,000 b/d Dakota Access oil pipeline being contested by the Standing Rock Sioux tribe.

The DC Circuit Court of Appeals reached its ruling just four days after holding oral arguments over the tribe's request for a lengthy construction freeze near a lake in North Dakota the tribe considers sacred. The tribe has argued the US Army Corps of Engineers did not adequately consider the indirect effects of allowing the pipeline to cross land managed by the corps.

But the court, in a two-page ruling, denied the request and lifted a three-week-old administrative injunction that had blocked pipeline construction within 20 miles of Lake Oahe. The court said the tribe failed to meet the requirements for an injunction, such as showing it faced "irreparable harm" and that it had substantial likelihood of eventually prevailing in court.

"We find the Tribe has not carried its burden of persuasion on these factors, and so we deny the motion," the court wrote.

US midstream company Energy Transfer is building the pipeline to carry crude from the Bakken formation to Illinois, where it will link to another pipeline that extends to Texas. The pipeline's route is mostly on private land, but about 3pc of the 1,136-mile (1,828km) pipeline crosses land managed by the corps.

Dakota Access still needs an easement from the corps to construct the pipeline under Lake Oahe. The corps last month said it would not issue the easement until it completed a broader review of the project. That process could be finished within weeks, or may take longer if the corps finds its initial environmental review of the project was inadequate.

The court also said although the tribe had failed to meet the "narrow and stringent standard" for an injunction, it offered hope there could be further consultation about historic sites. Energy Transfer and the corps have said they exceeded the requirements of that consultation process and adjusted the pipeline's route to avoid culturally important areas.

The court ruling will not affect a request President Barack Obama's administration made last month for Energy Transfer to voluntarily stop construction near Lake Oahe. During oral arguments last week an attorney for the pipeline said the company was not inclined to follow that request because it already had construction equipment in the area.

Energy Transfer and the corps did not respond for comment. The tribe could not immediately be reached for comment.