Biden Administration Lets DAPL Oil Continue to Flow Without Permit

Policy

Indigenous youth, organizers with the Dakota Access and Line 3 pipeline fights and climate activists march to the White House to protest against pipeline projects in Washington, DC on April 1, 2021. Lenin Nolly / NurPhoto via Getty Images

The Biden administration told a federal judge on Monday that the Dakota Access Pipeline should be allowed to continue pumping oil despite lacking a key federal permit.


The Army Corps of Engineers, which is conducting another extensive environmental review, said it could change its mind. Early last month, the Army Corps surprised Judge James Boasberg, and outraged lawyers representing the Standing Rock Sioux, when it said it wasn’t sure if the oil pipeline should be shut down.

“It’s baffling,” Earthjustice attorney Jan Hasselman said in a statement. “When it comes to the Dakota Access Pipeline, Biden’s Army Corps is standing in the way of justice for Standing Rock by opposing a court order to shut down this infrastructure while environmental and safety consequences are fully evaluated.”

For a deeper dive:

The Associated Press

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