A federal court rejected arguments by two American Indian tribes on Monday asking it to block the approval of the final leg of the Dakota Access pipeline.
The decision by District Court Judge James Boasberg in Washington, D.C., tossed out the tribes’ request for an injunction against the project after the Army Corps of Engineers granted a key easement to allow a segment of the 1,100-mile pipeline to be built below Lake Oahe in North Dakota.
“We are pleased that Judge Boasberg continues his thoughtful and judicious approach towards the Dakota Access pipeline,” said the group Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now, representing proponents of the pipeline. “It is frustrating, however, that the opposition continues to throw lawsuits against the wall in a flailing attempt to scuttle the project.”
The group said it supports the idea that all parties deserve their day in court. “But how many days are warranted and at what point does this activity become unmasked for what it is: an attack on America’s energy development and the jobs that go along with it,” the coalition said.
The tribes say the pipeline threatens their only source of drinking water. The developers say the pipeline will be buried more than 100 feet beneath the lake bed, making the threat of water contamination negligible.
Boasberg said he would consider the arguments again at a hearing between the tribes and the company building the pipeline at the end of the month.
The ruling could be seen as vindicating President Trump’s order from last month calling on the Army Corps to expedite final approval for the crude oil pipeline. The Army Corps approved the 1.5-mile easement on Wednesday, less than two weeks after Trump issued the order.
Immediately after, the Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Sioux tribes asked the court to impose a temporary halt on the $3.8 billion project.
Although the court order denied the tribes’ petition for injunction, the judge did order that beginning Feb. 21 the pipeline developer must provide weekly updates on the “likely date that oil will begin to flow beneath Lake Oahe.”
The court also plans to hold a hearing on the tribes’ motion for an injunction on Feb. 27. Responses in opposition are due by Feb. 21. The court will consider questions over the pipeline through the end of March.
