GAIN Statement on DAPL Environmental Assessment Ruling
The U.S. District Court in Washington, DC, ruled this afternoon that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must conduct a full Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the already approved and operational Dakota Access Pipeline. As we have stated exhaustively, The Army Corps met or exceeded all guidelines when conducting its review of the Environmental Assessment and permitting of the line. North Dakota also conducted a 13-month review before they allowed construction to move forward.
Below is a statement that you can attribute to me, Craig Stevens, spokesperson for the GAIN Coalition and former senior advisor to U.S. Energy Secretary Sam Bodman:
“This is a stunning decision that flies in the face of decades of widely accepted practice. The Dakota Access Pipeline is already the most studied, regulated, and litigated pipeline in the history of our country and has been safely operating for nearly three years. These companies that invest and support large scale infrastructure projects want certainty from the government; and those who built and now operate the pipeline followed every applicable local, state, and federal rule – but now a court is putting their work in potential peril. Not only does this decision risk one company’s investment, but it could also jeopardize our nation’s economic and energy security moving forward.”