I'm sure all of you reading this have heard of the controversial Keystone XL Pipeline project, and President Obama's decision to block the project. But have you heard of Keystone's younger, more destructive brother?
The Dakota Access Pipeline, also known as the Bakken Pipeline, is a proposed pipeline to run between Stanley, North Dakota, to Patoka, Illinois. The pipeline is expected to carry at least 450,000 barrels of crude oil through 1,172 miles of 30-inch pipe daily, which will then be delivered from Patoka to the Gulf Coast for export. Does this sound familiar? It should, because the Bakken Pipeline has the same destination as the Keystone XL project, and is a mere 7 miles shorter than the controversial Phase IV of the Keystone project.
The Bakken Pipeline exemplifies everything wrong with crony capitalism in the United States.
The Bakken Pipeline is backed by Dakota Access LLC, a subsidiary of Dallas-based Energy Transfer Partners (ETP), who have received permission for eminent domain by the four states through which the pipeline will run. The project was most recently approved by the State of Iowa, at the hand of Governor Terry Branstad. Branstad, of course, is good friends with former Governor Rick Perry of Texas, who now happens to sit on the board of directors of ETP. Of course, Branstad would not stand against the interests of ETP, as their success is sure to benefit him as well. To summarize: a private corporation has been given permission to seize land from private citizens to build the Bakken Pipeline.
This corporate cronyism has not been met without controversy. Landowners in Iowa have filed a lawsuit against Dakota Access, regarding their access to eminent domain. Various groups have banded together to stop the pipeline, including environmentalists, private citizens and landowners and concerned members of the community.
There are several environmental concerns about the Bakken Pipeline. The Sierra Club of Iowa has identified some of the risks that such a pipeline poses to the environment, including to the waterways which the pipeline is expected to cross, to farmland and private property along the pipeline's route and the potential for harm to wildlife and habitats along the pipeline's corridor. Aside from these environmental concerns, it is expected that the oil carried along the Bakken Pipeline will primarily be sold and used overseas, wokring against American energy independece.
The pipeline meets a particular point of controversy for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, for a number of reasons. One concern is the fact that this pipeline crosses the Missouri River and its tributaries multiple times, and should there be a spill or leak, the lives and livelihood of the Sioux could be put at risk. There are also concerns that the pipeline could damage sacred sites close to the Standing Rock Reservation, violating treaties held between the tribe and the federal government. In April, tribal and non-tribal citizens against the project held a symbolic 500 mile relay to deliver a petition to the Army Corps of Engineers to deny the permits required for the project (these permits were later granted anyways). The tribe has resisted the project, and recently a lawsuit has been filed against Sioux protesters in North Dakota, citing the protesters as a risk to the safety of Dakota Access workers. In a press release on Thursday, Morton County, North Dakota Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier claimed that the protesters are armed with pipe bombs and have fired shots at law enforcement. These claims, however, are heavily disputed by protesters. Activist Nathan Seim has called out Kirchmeier for lying about the nature of the protests.
Even if this project was met with armed resistance, this project is outrageous. Aside from the obvious environmental concerns of building a pipeline to transport hydro-fracked oil that crosses major rivers multiple times, this project exemplifies the cronyism that is present in America today. A private company is forcing private citizens off of their land and endangering the sovereignty of Native peoples. The government, of course, has sent their goons to disrupt the resistance this project has been met with. The Sioux people, and the private citizens affected by this project, have every right to be outraged by this project and to protest this pipeline. Morton County, the states of North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa and Illinois have no problem abusing the laws of eminent domain to build this pipeline, acting as nothing more than lackeys for their corporate donors. Lawmakers will stand idly by and do nothing to stop the theft of land and sovereignty from these citizens, as their friends at ETP will be sure to pay them off nicely for their complacency.
Cronyism has run amok in our country. Eminent domain abuse is a plague that allows the government to steal from private citizens for sole benefit of their corporate friends. Both citizens and the environment are being sold off for the benefit of corporate shareholders. It's time to stand up against this collusion, and to speak out against projects like the Bakken Pipeline.
