"The Dakota Access pipeline that’s been at the center of a years-long battle between oil companies and the Standing Rock Sioux tribe won’t be forced to shut down while federal regulators conduct a new environmental analysis.
The Biden administration’s decision to allow the line to keep operating is a victory for pipeline owner Energy Transfer LP and drillers such as Continental Resources Inc. that use it transport crude from North Dakota’s Bakken oil field. The move will likely come as a relief to an oil industry beset by President Joe Biden’s aggressive climate campaign, which has included canceling the permit for the $9 billion Keystone XL oil pipeline and pausing leasing on federal lands.
Justice Department lawyer Ben Schifman told the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia that the federal government has authority to take enforcement action against Dakota Access --which could include a shutdown-- but won’t do so “at this time.”
Opponents of the pipeline, including several tribes that pushed the court to issue its own shutdown order, viewed Friday’s hearing as test of Biden’s commitment to Indigenous rights and climate action. Their motion for a shutdown is pending before the judge, who could issue a decision in the coming weeks."
Ari Natter and Ellen Gilmer report for Bloomberg Environment April 9, 2021.
SEE ALSO:
"Judge Orders Delay Amid Debate Over Dakota Access Pipeline" (AP)
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