MORTON COUNTY, N.D., Dec. 6, 2016 (Gephardt Daily/UPI) — Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski has shared thoughts exclusively with Gephardt Daily about the Army Corps of Engineers’ decision to deny a permit for the construction of a key section of the Dakota Access Pipeline.
The decision, made Sunday afternoon, effectively halts the construction on the 1,172-mile oil pipeline about half a mile south of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation.
In a written statement to Gephardt Daily, Biskupski indicated she feels the Army Corps of Engineers and Pres. Barack Obama made the right call in temporarily halting the pipeline.
“The credit goes to the Water Protectors, both at Standing Rock, and around the world, who spoke out in defense of the environment and cultural protection,” Biskupski wrote.
“This action does not mean the work is over — besides an environmental review, we are urging the Obama Administration to take into consideration cultural impacts of this project, and of course we need to stay vigilant in defense of the environment with a new administration taking office in January.”
Thousands of demonstrators in Morton County, N.D., have protested against the pipeline since spring, and many have been arrested by officers attempting to remove them from private land. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe has opposed the line for two years.
Native American tribes oppose the pipeline on philosophical and environmental grounds.
The Army’s assistant secretary for civil works, Jo-Ellen Darcy, announced Sunday afternoon it will not approve an easement that would allow the proposed pipeline to cross under Lake Oahe in North Dakota.
Darcy said in a press release that she based her decision on a need to explore alternate routes for the Dakota Access Pipeline crossing.
“The best way to complete that work responsibly and expeditiously is to explore alternate routes for the pipeline crossing,” Darcy said in a statement.
Darcy added that the consideration of alternative routes would be best accomplished through an environmental impact statement with full public input and analysis.
Obama finally addressed the controversial $3.8 billion Dakota Access Pipeline on Wednesday, confirming the Army Corps of Engineers was looking at ways to reroute the line.
In an interview with Now This News, Obama spoke of the controversy for the first time.
“My view is that there is a way for us to accommodate sacred lands of Native Americans,” Obama said. “I think that right now the Army Corps is examining whether there are ways to reroute this pipeline.”
In his remarks, Obama acknowledged that the land the pipeline is slated to cover is on sacred land.
Obama’s administration was criticized in September when it temporarily blocked continuing work on the pipeline after a judge ruled construction could go forward.
Once completed, the pipeline is slated to transport crude oil through North Dakota, Iowa, Illinois and South Dakota.
Last month, Biskupski penned a lengthy blog post on the city website expressing her concern about the recent presidential election.
The blog post, entitled “Keeping Salt Lake City Great” outlined in detail Biskupski’s plans for the forward motion she intends for the city when the new administration takes office in the new year.
