In April, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe began protesting construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAP), an oil line going from North Dakota’s oil fields to an existing line in Datoka, Ill. The protest has been recognized by national media and the federal government has stepped in to halt construction in order to address the issue.

The DAP Project plans a $3.8 billion oil pipeline spanning 1,172 miles across four Northern U.S. states, hoping to eliminate the cost of transporting the crude oil via other methods such as the rail system and highways, which are considered less safe.
The company building the pipeline is also worried that stopping the project would cost upwards of $1.4 billion per year mostly because of revenue loss from hauling crude with current methods.

However, current plans have the pipeline being built directly through a sacred Native American burial ground which holds ancient artifacts of value to the tribe.

The Federal Government has ordered the Texas-based pipeline company, Energy Transfer Partners, to cease construction on the pipeline immediately, and will be reconsidering any previous decisions regarding the topic.

The government’s response came minutes after U.S. District Judge James Boasberg’s decision to deny the tribe’s request to halt progress.

The protest site itself has also been a center of unrest – law enforcement departments and the National Guard have been mobilized throughout the state in order to control protests and prevent violence.

The entire situation has come to show how much the government can say that they keep a close focus on racial divide and problems stemming from it, but they constantly miss important factors and situations that cause such things.

When the Dakota Access Pipeline was planned, the sacred burial ground that it goes through was entirely ignored, and construction had already started before the issue was addressed – costing hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxpayers’ money that might now go to waste because of the Federal Government’s error.

Due to the protests, over 40 people have been arrested, including direct members of the tribe, such as Dave Archambault, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s chairman, and supporters of the tribe who have marched with them.

When asked for their view on the situation, Vicki Granado, a spokesperson for Energy Partner Transfers, said that they had no comment.

When the project was first approved, it came with over 200 permits for water crossings. The tribe, along with many concerned citizens, feel that this could harm the water supply via pollution and violate several federal laws. However, the federal announcement was well received by the community, and they plan to continue making their voice heard.

“This is a beautiful start,” Archambault said.