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White House to respond to #NoDAPL petition with 203K signatures

Thursday, September 15, 2016

Attorney and activist Tara Houska (Couchiching First Nation) speaks at a #NoDAPL rally in front of the White House on September 13, 2016.. Photo by Indianz.Com

A petition to stop the Dakota Access Pipeline drew more than 203,000 signatures within 30 days.

The petition on WhiteHouse.Gov easily surpassed the 100,000 it needs to trigger a response from the Obama administration. An "official update" is now expected within 60 days.

"The Dakota Access pipeline is set to be constructed near the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota, crossing under the Missouri River which is the only source of water to the reservation," the petition, which was created on August 15, reads. "The pipeline is planned to transport approximately 470,000 barrels of crude oil per day. The potential of oil leaks would contaminate the only source of water for the reservation."

Of course, the Obama administration has responded to the #NoDAPL movement by putting an indefinite hold on a key portion of the controversial pipeline. Permission will not be granted at this time for work at Lake Oahe on the Missouri River, the Department of Justice, the Department of the Army and the Department of the Interior announced last Friday.

"They made this decision to ensure that the interest and concerns of everybody who was affected by the construction of this project were properly taken into account," Josh Earnest, a spokesperson for the White House, said at a press briefing on Monday.

But the controversy is far from over. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe are still working to prevent the Dakota Access partnership from building on private lands near the Missouri River. The Obama administration's action does not cover those areas.

And Energy Transfer Partners, the parent company of Dakota Access, has vowed to finish the 1,172-mile project despite the obstacles.

The lack of finality means the #NoDAPL movement continues. Jasilyn Charger, a young member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, said the resistance camps in North Dakota -- which continue to grow as attention spreads worldwide -- remain stronger than ever.

"My people are the only ones to have beaten the government," Charger said during a rally in front of the White House on Tuesday, referring to the historic 1876 Battle of the Greasy Grass, also known as the Battle of the Little Bighorn

"We're going to do it again. That's a vow to you today," Charger said to applause.

Attorneys for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, Dakota Access and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are due back in court on Friday as part of a lawsuit filed by Standing Rock. The status conference takes place at 2pm in Courtroom 19 of the federal court in Washington, D.C.

No major actions are expected from the proceeding but it could shed some light on the pipeline partnership's legal strategy. Dakota Access has not filed any papers in court in more than a week and the statement earlier this week by Energy Transfer Partners came after four days of silence on the controversy.

Relevant Documents:
Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Notice of Appeal (September 9, 2016)
Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Motion for An Injunction Pending Appeal (September 9, 2016)
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Response to Plaintiff's Motion For an Injunction (September 9, 2016)
Joint Statement from the Department of Justice, the Department of the Army and the Department of the Interior Regarding Standing Rock Sioux Tribe v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (September 9, 2016)
Federal Court Decision in #NoDAPL Case (September 9, 2016)