“This storm is a glimpse of what is to come as temperatures are still not reaching the winter lows of this region,” Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Chair Dave Archambault II said in appeal to pipeline resistance camp participants to return to their homes after the tribe achieved its goal of construction permit denial. Photo courtesy Josue Rivas [GoFundMe]
Sacred Stone Camp to stay
By Talli Nauman
Native Sun News Today
Health & Environment Editor
nativesunnews.today FT. YATES, N.D. –– As thousands of Dakota Access Pipeline opponents in resistance camps responded to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s appeal to fold up their tents for the winter, organizers turned attention toward a boycott of investment banks and other campaigns to prevent revival of the project. The appeal came in the wake of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ decision Dec. 4 favoring their demand to deny a permit for construction across the Missouri River. “As we reflect on the decision by the U.S. Army to suspend the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) river crossing easement and conduct a limited Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), the resistance camps at Standing Rock are making plans for the next phase of this movement,” a coalition of native groups said in a Dec. 9 written statement. Energy Transfer Partners and business associates in the nearly $3.8 million, 1,200-mile private oil pipeline project through unceded 1851 Ft. Laramie Treaty territory have vowed that the decision will not stop the companies from finishing the job, spurring resisters to strengthen opposition. Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Chair Dave Archambault II, noting that “Energy Transfer Partners will face an uphill battle in trying to dismantle the process initiated by this decision,” asked campers to return to their homes when weather permits. In a Dec. 6 letter to pipeline resisters, Archambault wrote, “I know we have prayed and continue to do so. Now you must believe in your prayer.” The tribe’s lawsuit against the Army, which is a foundation of the resistance and remains to be litigated in federal court, argues lack of consultation, the danger of water pollution from an oil spill a half-mile upstream from a primary drinking water intake, and destruction of sacred historic cultural properties. “Energy Transfer Partners cannot cross the easement, even if they drill. Not only will they will jeopardize the entire pipeline project, but they will also jeopardize their investors’ money and their bank loans," the letter stated. “They may drill up to the federal lands to try to provoke the campers. They will do this to create the illusion that the Army Corps of Engineers made the wrong decision," Archambault wrote. “We do not need to engage them in this; we need to go home." “While this phase of the struggle relied largely on the protectors at camp, this next stage will be focused on the legal battles, and keeping the current decision in place,” he said.
Read the rest of the story on the Native Sun News Today website: Sacred Stone Camp to stay (Contact Talli Nauman at talli.nauman@gmail.com) Copyright permission Native Sun News
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