Standing Rock Sioux Tribe (SRST) says: No easements are let to cross Missouri Riv.; 3 fed. agencies back SRST #standwithstandingrock insideclimatenews.org
You see, it all started with this Tribal Meeting with Army Corps of Engineers last April (Video here but it skips at 8 minutes so watch to then and reload sliding past 8:05. I chrome cast it to tv to improve the sound, etc.). April 29, 2016 narrative photo essay here.
One of the Final Environmental Assessment (EA) Documents reveals both the Illinois River and Kaskaskia River are to be crossed by horizontal drilling beneath the river beds. The whys and wherefores are shown in the EA Dakota Access Pipeline Project, Section 408 Consent for Crossing Federally Authorized Projects and Federal Flowage Easements, Prepared by: Dakota Access, LLC Houston, TX, Prepared for: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers St. Louis, MO, August 2016. Description of horizontal drilling beneath the river beds and the possibility of “frac-out” is in EA pp. 14-15, section 2.1.5, and pp. 21-22, Section 2.3.2.6. Fluid pressures can build up within a borehole during horizontal directional drilling (HDD) operations causing hydraulic fracturing of the substrate and subsequent migration of drilling fluids either into the waterway or to the land surface—this is known as a “frac-out”. Drilling fluid and waste fluid can contaminate a drilling site, a river, the ground and groundwater.
The pipeline company is waiting for the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers (USACE) to grant an easement to drill under Lake Oahe, ND. The Obama Administration must halt the issuance of an easement until the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe can have the opportunity to ensure the protection of its waters and sacred places.
Map source: Inside Climate News, Dakota Pipeline Was Approved by Army Corps Over Objections of Three Federal Agencies by Phil McKenna, Aug 30, 2016. The federal agencies objecting were U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of the Interior and the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP, described below). Detailed official USACE Map is here with various reservations & waterbodies shown.
The rejected alternative route crossing the Missouri north of Bismark, ND was defeated by citizen opposition in off-reservation rural and urban populations. Environmental racism is a cause of the ACE decision to permit the pipeline (DAPL).
U.S. Federal District Case 1:16-cv-01534-JEB Document 6 Filed 08/04/16 Page 1 of 53 shows Plaintiff Standing Rock Sioux Tribe moves this Court to preliminarily enjoin the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to withdraw Nationwide Permit 12 as applied to the Dakota Access Pipeline, and to withdraw verifications issued on July 25, 2016 for the Dakota Access Pipeline to discharge in federally regulated waters at 204 sites along the pipeline route.
Page 10 of 53 shows The Tribe respectfully moves this Court for preliminary injunctive relief. ... An injunction is needed because the ongoing construction of the pipeline, as authorized by the Corps, will damage and destroy sites of great historic, religious, and cultural significance to the Tribe. While the Tribe’s complaint raises issues under multiple statutes, this motion focuses on violations of the National Historic Preservation Act (“NHPA”).
Judge James E. Boarsberg, Federal Court for DC District, says the main legal issue is the consultation factor between the Tribes & Army Corps of Engineers in STANDING ROCK SIOUX TRIBE Plaintiff, v. U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS Defendant. He will issue his opinion by September 9 and an appeal hearing has been set for September 14 if the Tribe or USACE is unhappy with the decision.
On the website of Change.org nearly a quarter million people have signed a petition from Anna Lee, Bobbi Jean & the Oceti Sakowin Youth of Fort Yates, ND to Jo-Ellen Darcy, U.S. Assistant Secretary of the Army and two others. These Oceti Sakowin families lift up the words of Standing Rock Tribal Chairman Dave Archambault II, who said: “I am here to advise anyone that will listen that the Dakota Access Pipeline Project is harmful. It will not be just harmful to my people but its intent and construction will harm the water in the Missouri River, which is one of the cleanest and safest river tributary left in the United States.”
Aug 30th the 22 foot totem pole inspired by James Jewel,
As mentioned above, ACHP objects to USACE’s permits and processes. ACHP is an independent federal agency that promotes the preservation, enhancement, and productive use of our nation's historic resources, and advises the President and Congress on national historic preservation policy. (ACHP members include a member of an Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian organization, a governor—currently vacant, and a mayor—currently vacant who are appointed by the President. Current ACHP Member of a Tribe (term of office: 2012-2016) is Leonard A. Forsman, Suquamish —“people of the clear salt water”—, a man working as Suquamish Tribal Chairman since 2005. Suquamish Tribe formally supports SRST: 8-19-16 eloquent letter to Jo-Ellen Darcy, Asst. Secy. of the Army [in pp. 14-16].
Yesterday Aug. 30th near íŋyaŋ wakȟán othí —Sacred Stone Camp— where the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe is experiencing the gathering of nations, the Suquamish Tribe was present when the Totem Pole Journey members of Lhaq'temish people —People of the Sea (Lummi Nation)— with a newly honored 22-foot totem pole arrived in the gathering of 8 Pacific-northwest region nations who appeared. Today —Red Warrior Camp— In the back of the Overflow Camp, about 3/5 of the way from Mandan to Cannonball River, ND (Google Earth) reports:
“...[...]… cut off both north and south on highway 6 from the action point. They cut off support from the 1000s of people at the camp. We are peaceful and this action is our prayer. Remember this. This is what warriors look like. Be smart, Be disciplined, be vigilant. Blihichiyapo. We are here with Happy American Horse. They've made about 10 arrests.” ...[more]…
An estimated 2000 people are now living at the camp known as the Overflow Camp in Morton County on the border of the Standing Rock Sioux Indian Reservation. FB: Red Warrior Camp is not the Overflow Camp but is in back of it. T (image): Happy American Horse, chained
“Whoever doesn't not move 100 yards from Happy American Horse will be arrested." Morton Co. Police just now”
The goal of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), which established the ACHP in 1966, is to have federal agencies act as responsible stewards of our nation's resources when their actions affect historic properties. The ACHP is the only entity with the legal responsibility to encourage federal agencies to factor historic preservation into federal project requirements.
The ACHP also formally objected to the decision by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) that the pipeline would not harm historic properties on federally managed grasslands easements, and urged the Corps and FWS “to develop a comprehensive [programmatic agreement] to address varying jurisdiction and authority over components of the DAPL Project.”
On March 15, 2016 the ACHP wrote to the Corps noting that the agency “remained perplexed” by the Corps’ difficulties in consulting with the Tribe, pointing out that there was no tribal participation in identification surveys and urging the Corps to look at alternative pipeline alignments as required by ACHP regulations. In that letter, the ACHP stated: “Given the sheer number of individual permits and the unlikelihood that the pipeline could be constructed but for the issuance of these numerous permits, it is unclear how the Omaha District concluded that its jurisdiction and responsibilities to assess environmental impacts form the broader undertaking are limited only to the 209 crossings.” (There were 204 separate waterbody crossings verified in the Corps’ July 25, 2016 set of verifications, claiming that each action was an individual, stand-alone “undertakings”, Separate waterbody crossings.)
In the EA for North Dakota, the USACE stated: “As discussed in the Biological Opinion and the EA, the Proposed Action would result in no adverse impacts to any federally listed threatened or endangered species or their habitats.” USACE said “The current status of the Dakota skipper in the state is considered tenuous, and most populations are considered vulnerable due to their extremely isolated nature.”
USACE obfuscated, befogged, muddied and confused the status of the Dakota Skipper (Hesperia dacotae) that has Critical Habitat ND map Units 11 & 12, in McKenzie County, and is listed under Endangered Species Act October 23, 2014: Dakota Skipper and Poweshiek Skipperling Status: Threatened with a 4(d) rule; October 23, 2014, Critical Habitat Designated; October 1, 2015 The Poweshiek Skipperling critical habitat unit maps are in nearly every state DAPL is crossing and Dakota Skipper is mapped here in both Dakota states.
Take action today to stand with Standing Rock Sioux Tribe! Write a letter to the White House and the Army Corps of Engineers asking them to halt the Dakota Access Pipeline until the Tribe’s water and sacred sites are protected.
Check out NCAI’s letter here: goo.gl/… #StandingWithStandingRock #NoDAPL
Call to all traditional canoe paddlers of the Pacific Northwest!
On September 7th and 8th of 2016, there will be a canoe pull from Bismarck, North Dakota to the Camp of Sacred Stones on the Cannon Ball River.
This will precede the September 9th federal court ruling at the request of Standing Rock Sioux Tribe to stop a four-state oil pipeline currently under construction. All tribes will gather at Standing Rock on this day, in unified prayer, during this time.
List of pipeline accidents in the United States