Uploaded November 2016 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
With only 25 percent of construction left to go on the contentious Dakota Access pipeline and more than 140 arrests this weekend, the Sioux and their allies are calling for reinforcements to continue blocking the proposed pipeline that could destroy sacred sites and contaminate drinking water.
Let’s rewind a little: After the Standing Rock Sioux lost their legal case against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in September, the Department of Justice announced it would withhold final permits needed for the pipeline to cross under the river near the primary source of drinking water for the Standing Rock Indian Reservation. These permits could still be granted, pending further review of the Sioux’s complaints.
The Obama administration also stepped in to ask Dakota Access LLC to voluntarily stop work on the pipeline. Needless to say, the company declined, and construction continues while tribal members and activists seek to delay them by holding prayer ceremonies and cuffing themselves together with PVC pipe.
In a recent interview, Obama said the pipeline may be rerouted to protect the Sioux’s water and land. But that decision — if it comes — won’t happen for weeks. Meanwhile, Dakota Access continues to creep toward the Missouri River.
What will happen next? Stay tuned.
With only 25 percent of construction left to go on the contentious Dakota Access pipeline and more than 140 arrests this weekend, the Sioux and their allies are calling for reinforcements to continue blocking the proposed pipeline that could destroy sacred sites and contaminate drinking water.
Let’s rewind a little: After the Standing Rock Sioux lost their legal case against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in September, the Department of Justice announced it would withhold final permits needed for the pipeline to cross under the river near the primary source of drinking water for the Standing Rock Indian Reservation. These permits could still be granted, pending further review of the Sioux’s complaints.
The Obama administration also stepped in to ask Dakota Access LLC to voluntarily stop work on the pipeline. Needless to say, the company declined, and construction continues while tribal members and activists seek to delay them by holding prayer ceremonies and cuffing themselves together with PVC pipe.
In a recent interview, Obama said the pipeline may be rerouted to protect the Sioux’s water and land. But that decision — if it comes — won’t happen for weeks. Meanwhile, Dakota Access continues to creep toward the Missouri River.
What will happen next? Stay tuned.
