Gov. Branstad blames Pres. Obama for pipeline decision

Indigenous people, drawn from over 200 tribes, have been protesting against the Dakota Access pipeline for months amidst claims it threatens the Standing Rock Tribe’s water supply and has despoiled sacred sites.

Although the US Army Corps of Engineers said last week it won’t allow drilling under the Missouri River, many involved worry that the assurance is a ruse, according to The Guardian.

The Sunday announcement by Assistant Army Secretary Jo-Ellen Darcy does not actually deny an easement for the project, but says additional review is needed.

The Obama administration blocked the Dakota Access pipeline on Sunday, at least temporarily, but supporters said Monday they expect the pipeline’s backers to reapply for the same route under President-elect Donald Trump’s administration.

Protesters have been involved in tense stand-offs with security and police over the last few months, many of which of have been violent and resulted in dozens of arrests by local law enforcement.

North Dakota Republican Sen.

Late on Sunday, Energy Transfer Partners said in a joint statement with its partner Sunoco Logistics Partners that it does not intend to reroute the line and called the Obama administration’s decision a “political action”.

It will leave office with another notch in its belt, now that the Army Corps of Engineers has acted to block a final piece of the Dakota Access Pipeline.

About 1,000 activists gathered Monday at the Backwater Bridge on Highway 1806, braving a winter storm that brought blowing snow and subfreezing temperatures to the protest near Cannon Ball, North Dakota.

Why are Native American leaders celebrating?

“Our voices were heard, you know they heard our voices”.

Other protesters echoed that sentiment.

Joe Cheray, organizer of the event which brought almost 20 at one point to the corner of S.W. 1st and Topeka Boulevard, was cautious to use the word “protest” in describing the group which held signs with slogans like “Water is Life” and “No DAPL” while eliciting honks and cheers from some passing drivers. It modified the route to avoid 140 of them and came up with a plan with the state of North Dakota to limit any effect on the other nine.

More than 550 people from throughout the country have been arrested since August. Officers have been accused by pipeline foes of unnecessary force by using tear gas, flash bangs, water hoses and rubber bullets in their efforts to herd protesters off private land, highways and streets. No one was injured by the shooting.

North Dakota officials say law enforcement at the protest site has cost the state about $20 million. It began to grow in August and has been called the largest gathering of Native American tribes in a century. Veterans Stand for Standing Rock spokeswoman Ashleigh Jennifer Parker told The Associated Press on Thursday that the group’s mission is “to go and ask and offer if we can help and support the tribes that are already there”.

Sadie-Phoenix Lavoie and Clayton Thomas-Müller said they were bracing for what could have been a tense standoff as the Army Corps’ previously announced deadline to vacate the camp loomed over Monday. “People are staying behind to make sure they follow through, and they want to see (Energy Transfer Partners) take their equipment, pull out and go”. Its intent is to carry oil to a shipping point in IL.

The Corps denied an easement for construction of the section of the pipeline Sunday.

The Standing Rock Sioux, whose reservation straddles the North Dakota-South Dakota border, are suing federal regulators for approving the pipeline.

Speakers talked about the Flint water crisis, the massive 2010 oil spill in the Kalamazoo River, the controversial Enbridge Energy pipeline that runs beneath the Straits of Mackinac and other perceived threats to water resources in MI.

The tribe hasn’t fared well in court. An appeal is pending. That segment was the only contested part of the 1,172-mile pipeline, which is nearly completed.

The decision on Sunday from the Obama administration-formally from the Department of the Army, which is responsible for ensuring the crossing complies with federal law-was meant to rectify the tribe’s concerns.

Donald Trump warns another US company. The judge isn’t likely to issue a decision until January at the earliest. “We’ve been picking up the trash, finding firewood, unloading trucks, whatever it is that needs to be done”, he said.

The Standing Rock Sioux filed suit against the Corps, trying to get them to order pipeline builder Energy Transfer Partners to halt DAPL. At this time it is not certain whether he will liquidate his stock holdings, pass them to a blind trust, or transfer them to his children to manage before taking office.

Oceti Sakowin camp organizers noted that President-elect Donald Trump (who has financial assets invested in the pipeline) could reverse this decision.