US Army Corps says oil should keep flowing through Dakota Access Pipeline in long-awaited study
WASHINGTON, D.C. (North Dakota Monitor) — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Friday issued a long-awaited Dakota Access Pipeline environmental impact statement, recommending that the pipeline keep operating but with some new conditions for its Missouri River crossing in North Dakota.
The pipeline has been operating since June 2017, carrying crude oil from North Dakota’s Bakken oil field to Illinois. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe has opposed the project and challenged it in court, citing concerns about impacts to the tribe’s Missouri River water supply.
A federal judge in 2020 revoked the easement for the pipeline crossing under the Missouri River just north of the Standing Rock reservation, requiring additional environmental study.
The 464-page environmental impact statement evaluated five alternatives, including denying the easement or rerouting the pipeline. The Corps said its preferred alternative grants the easement, allowing the pipeline to keep operating, but with some additional conditions.
The recommendation is not official until after a 30-day waiting period required under the National Environmental Policy Act. After that period concludes on Jan. 20, 2026, the Corps may issue a record of decision.
The options evaluated were:
- Deny the easement and abandon the pipeline by removal.
- Deny the easement and abandon the pipeline in place.
- Grant the easement with the same conditions as the previous easement, which Dakota Access LLC preferred.
- Grant the easement with additional conditions.
- Construct and operate a pipeline reroute north of Bismarck.
In its analysis, the Corps wrote that the fourth option, granting the easement with conditions, protects environmental resources and responds to comments raised by Tribal Nations.
The conditions aim to prevent an oil spill and minimize the impacts of a spill, such as implementing new leak detection technology as it becomes available and conducting groundwater monitoring and surface water sampling.
The Army Corps held two meetings in Bismarck in November 2023 to collect public comment on the environmental impact statement. At the time, Corps officials said the final statement was expected in 2024.
In interviews after those 2023 meetings, the chairs of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe said the Dakota Access Pipeline was operating illegally without a permit and should be shut down. Tribal leaders and environmental groups have also raised concerns about an inadequate spill response plan.
North Dakota officials, meanwhile, have supported the continuing operation of the pipeline.
“After eight years of operating safely, the Dakota Access Pipeline has become an essential part of our nation’s energy infrastructure,” Gov. Kelly Armstrong said in a statement. “Its continued operation will ensure energy security and affordability for the country while providing positive economic impact that touches every North Dakotan.”
Jeff Beach and Jacob Orledge contributed to this story. This is a developing story and will be updated.
