The Pipeline Vs. The People

 

Written by: Erin Elliott

https://insideclimatenews.org/news/16082018/keystone-xl-oil-pipeline-map-new-route-environmental-impact-statement-nepa-transcanada-tar-sands/

        In 2008, the original idea for the Keystone XL Pipeline was proposed, and this idea included a pipeline that would, if fully completed, run crude oil from Oklahoma all the way up to Canada. This idea was extremely beneficial for those who had a financial stake in the project, as this would be a quick and effective way to transport oil long distances at a relatively low cost. However, the specific type of oil that this pipeline would carry is unlike most other crude oils, as this specific type of oil called “tar sand oil” has an increased capability of eroding pipe and can generally be more destructive.

            It is knowing this information that we can see how this kind of pipeline could be extremely harmful to native lands and peoples if, as it seems that it would be entirely likely that the pipeline could very easily be ruptured and cause a huge disruption to the ecosystem at hand. That would be why the Obama administration had initially vetoed this project, as all evidence showed that the risks of the project failing were far greater than the benefits. However, this decision was then turned over by the Trump administration, as the appeal of the financial benefits to the oil corporations became priority. Because of the potential danger to their lifestyles and ecosystems, this caused the Sicangu Lakota Oyate, Assiniboine Nakoda, and Aaniiih Tribes (along with the Native American Rights Fund) to sue the administration in 2018 over the potential illegal activity in acquiring the necessary permits to actually build the pipeline. This then led to a secondary lawsuit in which the same group sued the United States Department of Interior and the Bureau of Land Management for the same reasons. When initially acquiring the permits to go forward with the project, the federal government should have had to consult with the native tribes living on the land, per the rights guaranteed to these tribes, but it was evident that those processes had not taken place.

            In a positive turn of events, President Biden vetoed this project again very quickly after taking office this year. However, although the project has been stopped, we do have to take a look at the real issues that caused the project to have gone forth at all in the first place. This pipeline would have been devastating to native peoples had it ruptured. The oil would have polluted the water, making it undrinkable, and also affecting any marine wildlife that the tribes would have depended on as a food source. It could have poisoned land that the natives needed for farming or hunting. Even more than the issue of what physical affects the project could have, we also must consider the fact that the land that native tribes live on is more than just land. Land means a great deal to these people, and this pipeline would have essentially bulldozed over many significant places that the tribes held dear.

            This struggle of native people having to fight for their sacred lands is not a new one, and it is also not new for profit to be prioritized over people. Sure, this pipeline would do great things to line the pockets of the millionaires in the oil industry. I can see the argument that it would create some jobs. However, all that aside, there is a looming and terrifying risk that the pipeline could do a massive amount of harm to a large group of people, and I think it is important to acknowledge how they should never have had to even second guess whether the project should go forward or not, given those risks. Native people have consistently been put into positions where profit has been prioritized over them, and this pipeline is just a small part of this greater issue.

Sources:

Denchak, M., 2021. What Is the Keystone XL Pipeline?. [online] NRDC. Available at: <https://www.nrdc.org/stories/what-keystone-pipeline>.

 Kusnetz, N., 2021. Keystone XL Pipeline Hit with New Delay: Judge Orders Environmental Review - Inside Climate News. [online] Inside Climate News. Available at: <https://insideclimatenews.org/news/16082018/keystone-xl-oil-pipeline-map-new-route-environmental-impact-statement-nepa-transcanada-tar-sands/> [Accessed 11 March 2021].

Native American Rights Fund. 2021. Rosebud Sioux and Fort Belknap file suit against Keystone XL - Native American Rights Fund. [online] Available at: <https://www.narf.org/cases/keystone/>.