This lines up with an industry trend: Oil and gas companies are exporting 8.4 million barrels of crude oil and refined fuels every single day. The spill affected 200,000 square feet of wetlands, which could take years to recoverif it ever does. Tribes and the United States government sign Treaties of Fort Laramie establishing respective territories. Since the approval, the Trump administration has been sued twice by environmental organizations and lost each time. This isnt your grandfathers typical oil, says Anthony Swift, director of NRDCs Canada project. It was a blatant attempt to prioritize corporate interests over the health and well-being of the regions citizens and tribes authority to govern their lands and protect their citizens. Upon entering office, President Trumpwith his pro-polluter cabinet of fossil fuel advocates, billionaires, and bankersquickly demonstrated that his priorities differed. On October 16, 2020, the judge ruled against the Tribes on some claims, finding that the Presidents permit only applied to the border and not the entire pipeline. This mapping tool hopes to bridge that gap by giving communities the ability to see how close this deadly tar sands snake comes to their homes, communities and lands. The obligation of the United States to uphold those treaties is paramount, and Keystone XLs current path cannot be approved without the Siangu Lakotas consent. Neither the president nor wealthy foreign corporations are above the laws of our country. TC Energy must follow the law, and that includes our laws and regulations with respect to the construction of this pipeline. Severe oil leaks worsened Keystone pipeline's spill record - POLITICO document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Boulder, CO (303) 447-8760 The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. In granting the right-of-way, the BLM failed to analyze and uphold the United States treaty obligations to protect the Tribes lands and natural resources. Anchorage, AK (907) 276-0680 But, the President must comply with the Treaties, and TC Energy must comply with Rosebud law. Among other things, the complaint describes: NARF Staff Attorney Matthew Campbell explained, Before we allow a foreign company to build another pipeline to haul dirty tar sands across any American soil, we should be taking a hard look at the possible impact on American land, water, health, and safety. June: Phase 1 of the Keystone Pipeline goes online. But the path to victory wasnt always clear. The Keystone XL Pipeline and America's History of Indigenous The KXL phase of the pipeline cuts directly through the traditional homelands of our client tribes. By the time President Biden took office in 2021, ready to fulfill his campaign promise to revoke the cross-border permit, the dirty energy pipeline had become one of the foremost climate controversies of our time. November: The Obama administration rejects TransCanadas application to build the Keystone XL pipeline. A study published in early 2020, co-authored by TC Energys own scientists, found that the anti-corrosion coating on the projects pipes was damaged from being stored outside and exposed to the elements for the last decade, notes NRDC senior attorney Jaclyn Prange, who spent years working on KXL litigation. In the meantime, the court issued an injunction pursuant to the Clean Water Act in another case that prevents TransCanada from crossing any rivers. The pipeline had been projected to carry oil nearly 1,200 miles (1,900km). The reversal came as no surprise. The Rosebud Sioux Tribe and the Fort Belknap Indian Community intend to move ahead with their claims against the United States and to demand that the United States honor its legal obligations. Heres everything you need to know about the historic KXL fightand why the pipelines cancellation has had no impact on current oil prices. Rhetorical Analysis Of Why Dakota Is The New Keystone Its a pipeline through America, and it threatens to be a disaster for us if it leaks poisons on the way. Leading scientists and economists came out in opposition to the project, in addition to unions and world leaders such as the Dalai Lama, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and former president Jimmy Carter (together, these and other Nobel laureates have written letters against the project). They were bargained for with the blood of our ancestors. It has also been determined that tar sands oil emits 17 percent more carbon than other forms of crude oil. The first, a southern leg, had already been completed and now runs between Cushing, Oklahoma,. A Peoples Orientation to a Regenerative Economy, Chief Theresa Spence and Attawapiskat First Nation file urgent action with UN committee, Indigenous Storytellers Ashley Fairbanks and Jennifer K. Falcon Launch New Podcast We Keep The Fire: Indigenous Climate Futures, Inyo County tribes, residents, and leaders welcome the news of an indefinite suspension of drilling activities at Conglomerate Mesa. Jessica Ravitz, CNN. US President Joe Biden has cancelled permits for the controversial Keystone XL pipeline on his first day in office. The Dakota Access Pipeline The controversial construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) gained national and international attention when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers accepted an application filed by Energy Transfer Partners, a Texas-based developer behind the project. It was first initiated in 2010, and Indigenous activists protested for a decade against its construction. 6210 Bristol Pkwy. (a) On March 29, 2019, the President granted to TransCanada Keystone Pipeline, L.P. a Presidential permit (the "Permit") to . The Tribes are asking the court to declare the review process in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) and to rescind the illegal issuance of the Keystone XL pipeline presidential permit. Pros And Cons Of The Dakota Access Pipeline Conflict | ipl.org In his recent proclamation, Missing and Murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives Awareness Day, 2019, President Trump declared it imperative to end the violence that disproportionately affects American Indian and Alaska Native communities. See our request for intervention. Obama says TransCanada is free to submit another application. They have laws protecting their water and those laws must be respected. Keystone pipeline's path cuts across Indian Country and history Whats more, the whole process of getting the oil out and making it usable creates three to four times the carbon pollution of conventional crude extraction and processing. November: TransCanada says the costs of Keystone XL have grown to US$8 billion from US$5.4 billion. One of the central arguments made by pipeline pushers was that tar sands expansion will move forward with or without Keystone XL. The Tribes asked the court to rescind the illegal issuance of the Keystone XL pipeline presidential permit. Opposition emerges in Nebraska. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. This rate of toxic spills is much more frequent than TransCanada predicted and reported to the federal government. September: TransCanada and ConocoPhillips file an application for the Keystone XL Phase 4 extension. April: TransCanada submits a new route to officials in Nebraska for approval. Indigenous leaders are encouraging him to go even further and cancel more controversial fossil fuel projects, such as the Dakota Access pipeline. As you know, our natural resources are finite. The Fort Belknap Indian Community and Rosebud Sioux Tribe, represented by the Native American Rights Fund, continued their fight against the illegal permitting of the Keystone XL Pipeline with two filings in the US District Court of Montana. Its costly both to produce and to ship, particularly by rail, which would be an alternative to Keystone XL. Geographic Information System (GIS) is a computer-based technology that combines geographic data and relevant information about specific locations. Of course, TransCanada claims that KXL will be safe, that it will be state of the art. New climate change information requires a new environmental impact analysis. Dave Heineman approves the proposed route for Keystone XL, sending the project back to the State Department for review. Good Luck Persuading These Nebraskans, The Dirty Fight Over Canadian Tar Sands Oil, 10 Threats from the Canadian Tar Sands Industry, The Dakota Access Pipeline Fight Fuels Battles Across the Country, Still No Approved Route for KXL in Nebraska, Meet Jane Kleeb: One of Nebraskas First and Fiercest KXL Opponents, Why We Must Stop the Flow of Tar Sands Oil, Win! In 2017, the Trump administration reversed Obamas veto, signing an executive order to advance the Keystone pipeline as well as a similar crude oil project, the Dakota Access Pipeline despite the many valid arguments made against the two pipelines. NARF stands with our clients, the Rosebud Sioux Tribe and the Fort Belknap Indian Community, in their staunch opposition to the completion of the Keystone XL arm of the pipeline system. June: TransCanada announces it will buy ConocoPhillips stake in Keystone. Of course, TransCanada claims that KXL will be safe, that it will be state of the art. September: Canadas National Energy Board approves the Canadian section. On Thursday, April 16, NARF attorneys appeared before Judge Brian Morris of the United States District Court of Montana for oral arguments in Rosebud Sioux Tribe v. Trump. Historic flooding recently inundated parts of the Cornhusker State where the proposed Keystone XL pipeline would pass through. On November 17, 2020, the Rosebud Sioux Tribe and the Fort Belknap Indian Community, represented by the Native American Rights Fund and co-counsel, filed a federal lawsuit against the United States Department of Interior (DOI) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) over their issuing of the KXL permit. Trump OKs Keystone pipeline, calling it 'great day' for jobs The "replacement" pipeline runs mostly on a completely new route through Minnesota, barreling through hundreds of lakes, rivers, aqueducts and wetlands. People must understand that the Ogalalla Aquifer that this pipeline will cross covers 8 states and waters 30 percent of American crops. Obviously, that is not the case. March: Canadas National Energy Board approves the Canadian section of the Keystone XL. Leading climate scientist and former NASA researcher James Hansen has warned that fully exploiting Canadas tar sands reserves by moving forward with these projects would mean game over for our climate. Tar sands lie beneath the northern Alberta boreal forest. Our health and safety should take priority over companies profits. Washington, DC (202) 785-4166. amended complaint in what will now be known as, an amended complaint against TransCanada and President Trump. Between the years of 1778 and 1871 alone, the United States government has signed over 370 treaties with different indigenous nations, nearly all of which promised peace, defined land boundaries, and protection of land, water, and hunting rights. On March 23, 2017, the U.S. Department of State granted TransCanadas permit application and issued it a presidential permit to construct and operate the Keystone XL Pipeline. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) initially stated that, on a wells-to-wheels basis, tar sands oil emits 17 percent more carbon than other types of crude, but several years later, the State Department revised this number upward, stating that the emissions could be 5 percent to 20 percent higher than previously indicated. That means burdening the planet with an extra 178.3 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually, the same impact as 38.5 million passenger vehicles or 45.8 coal-fired power plants.