By Jonah Ruddock
On his first day in the White House, President Biden put out an executive order that stopped construction on the Keystone XL pipeline, which would’ve transported tar sands oil from Canada to Texas. As it was set to run through the heart of Oceti Sakowin territory, it sparked many protests among Indigenous Americans and their allies. Biden’s decision to end this project was proof of his commitment to protecting Native communities and the environment, and hopefully a sign of things to come.
Now, he is being pushed to take similar action against the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL), which was declared illegal by federal courts last summer but is still transporting 500,000 barrels of crude oil each day from North Dakota to Illinois. It crosses wildlife habitats, farms, and communities, and despite the fact that it cuts through tribal land, disrupting burial grounds and polluting drinking water, those in charge overlooked the legally required step of consulting Indigenous leaders about it. It was originally supposed to run through a predominantly white neighborhood, but changed course when the people there protested, fearing that the pipeline would contaminate their water supply. Its revised placement in one of the state’s poorest counties, almost entirely populated by Indigenous Americans whose protests have been ignored, is a show of blatant racism. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, the Yankton Sioux Tribe, and the Oglala Sioux Tribe have been fighting against DAPL’s presence for years, and what looked like a victory for them last summer has produced no tangible change.
“It is a more complex legal scenario [than shutting down the Keystone XL pipeline], but they could do it tomorrow as it’s operating without a permit and has been declared illegal by federal courts,” lawyer Jan Hasselman, who represents the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe through the organization Earthjustice, told The Guardian. Despite the simplicity of ending this pipeline’s career, Biden has not yet taken action. His plan to reach net-zero emissions by 2050 in the United States would require investment in fossil fuels to stop. If he’s serious about this goal, shutting down the Dakota Access Pipeline would be a logical step to take. Another pipeline activists hope to obliterate is Line 3, which will cross also Indigenous lands and bring tar sands oil from Canada to the United States when construction is finished. A few months ago, seven people were arrested for protesting Line 3.
A decision was supposed to be made concerning DAPL on February 10th, but the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers asked for an extension. An environmental review is set to take place on April 9th and will last for a year. It is hoped that the pipeline will stop operating while this goes on. Climate activists, Native Americans, lawmakers, and celebrities are showing their support for this idea. Efforts include peaceful protests, a letter from female Native American leaders, a powerful video from the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and the organization Earthjustice, a letter from various public figures, and a letter from senators and representatives Elizabeth Warren, Jeff Merkeley, Nanette Diaz Barragán, Raúl Grijalva, and Raul Ruiz. The Dakota Access Pipeline has been put under review once before by the Obama Administration, but when President Trump was elected he called it off. It’s no wonder that DAPL’s history includes some quintessentially Trump era legal corner-cutting.
Some Republican lawmakers, including North Dakota Senator Kevin Cramer, disagree with these movements. “The Army Corps of Engineers should be allowed to proceed as they are without political interference from the Biden Administration. This is not another opportunity to wage war on North Dakota’s energy producers,” he said in January. Biden himself has never publicly commented on the issue, although Vice President Harris stated in 2017 that she was in favor of shutting the pipeline down, writing, “The Dakota Access Pipeline is about protecting the water we drink and leaving our children a sustainable future. We can’t let the interests of Big Oil erase the environmental and native rights progress that we’ve made.” How her policy may have changed since then is unknown.
Biden may be the president that the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and other tribes have spent years hoping for, the one to finally put an end to the Dakota Access Pipeline. No matter what his decision is, it will speak volumes about what the future of his presidency holds.
