Des Moines, Iowa — Opponents of the Dakota Access Pipeline are celebrating the move by the Army Corps of Engineers to deny an easement for the oil pipeline to cross a reservoir on the Missouri River in North Dakota.
Jessica Reznicek of Des Moines had carried out a two-week long fast outside the Iowa Utilities Board building and called on the board to revoke permits for construction of the pipeline in Iowa. After the Corps’ announcement, Reznicek had a bowl of chicken soup, but promised to continue her efforts.
Aside from the small section in North Dakota that’s now on hold, the 1,172-mile pipeline is nearly completed. It runs through four states, including Iowa. Governor Terry Branstad is blasting the Obama administration’s decision to halt construction. Branstad says construction workers are among the biggest backers of the project.
The pipeline was set to cross the Missouri River near the Standing Rock Sioux reservation border in North Dakota. Tribal members have protested, saying a pipeline breach would threaten their drinking water. Branstad claims President Obama is caving in to environmental activists like Tom Steyer.
The pipeline was installed this summer and fall in O’Brien, Sioux, and Lyon Counties on its way to Illinois.
