HUGE VICTORY

Federal Court Bans Dakota Access Pipeline Permit, Forcing Project to Shut Down

The U.S. District Court ruling is a huge victory for environmentalists and Native Americans who had fought the project for years.

After four years of litigation and protests across the country, Native American tribes and environmentalists have won. The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled Monday that the Dakota Access pipeline must shut down and be drained by Aug. 5 because a crucial federal permit fell short of National Environmental Policy Act requirements. It cancels a permit from the Army Corps of Engineers, and will force the pipeline to end a three-year run of delivering oil from North Dakota shale fields to an Illinois oil hub. Monday’s decision is a huge defeat for the oil industry and Trump administration. The Standing Rock Sioux, Cheyenne River Sioux, and others first sued the Army Corps in 2016 for approving the project at Standing Rock, alleging it put water supplies and cultural resources at risk. It became a flashpoint for protesters across the nation, thousands of whom camped out in North Dakota for months and physically blocked construction from going ahead.