Bringing the Dakota Access Pipeline Fight to its Owners in Pennsylvania

Bringing the Dakota Access Pipeline Fight to its Owners in Pennsylvania

Tribal and Environmental Groups Protest at Sunoco Logistics Headquarters

Sierra Club chapters from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware, joined with the Delaware Lenape Indian Tribe today to rally against the Dakota Access Pipeline at Sunoco’s corporate headquarters. The rally was in solidarity with thousands of people and over 200 Native American tribes from across the nation to protest one Sunoco Logistics Partners, who are part of the company who owns the pipeline. We are standing with the Standing Rock Sioux tribe who would be impacted by the Dakota Access pipeline because it is part of the battle against dangerous pipelines throughout our region. The Dakota Access pipeline would carry 450,000 barrels of oil through North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, and Illinois — cross under the Missouri River just upstream of the Tribe's drinking water supply, where an oil spill would threaten public health and safety.

“The Lenape Indian Tribe of Delaware stands in solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in calling for the Army Corps of Engineers to halt this pipeline and initiate an administrative process that includes full Tribal input and consultation. Indigenous cultural and natural resources, especially clean water rights, must be protected,” said Chief Dennis ' White Otter’ Coker, Lenape Indian Tribe of Delaware.

In 2014 Energy Transfer Partners and Dakota Access, whose largest owner is Sunoco Logistics Partners announced plans for a 1,168-mile-long oil pipeline that would fracked oil from the Bakken oil fields in North Dakota to Illinois (via South Dakota and Iowa) where it will link with another pipeline that will transport the oil to terminals and refineries along the Gulf of Mexico. The Dakota Access pipeline would cut through communities, farms, sensitive natural areas, wildlife habitat, and tribal lands, including the Standing Rock Sioux's ancestral lands that are within half a mile of its current route.

“We are standing in solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux in their fight against this destructive and damaging pipeline. This pipeline is cutting through their sacred lands and is a threat to their environment. It also risks natural lands, wildlife habitat, and the tribe’s water supply. The construction of this pipeline would do irreparable harm to lands held in Trust for the Standing Rock Sioux. This pipeline is a disaster waiting to happen with a possible spill or explosion. We are protesting at the Sunoco Headquarters because they are part of the company who owns Dakota Access Pipeline,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “Sunoco is not only proposing destructive projects that hurt environmentally sensitive lands in the Mid-West, but are trying to push through pipelines on the East Coast. This pipeline might even connect to refineries here, increasing pollution and greenhouse gases. That is why we must continue the public outcry against these dangerous project and urge Sunoco to reject them.”

Despite the many risks to public safety and the environment, in July 2016, the final permit from the Army Corps of Engineers was issued for Dakota Access after Nationwide Permit 12 was used to segment the pipeline into individual projects. This allowed for a fast track approval without adequate environmental review or public input. This approval was also missing sufficient consultation with the Standing Rock Sioux, using a technicality that allowed them not to consider the potential impacts of an oil spill. Recently the Obama Administration took action to temporarily halt construction on only part of the project's route and we need to demand the pipeline is permanently rejected.

“Sunoco Logistics has been pushing pipeline projects all across the county -- pipelines that cut through sacred lands, sensitive wetlands and right through our communities -- and Sierra Club volunteers are pushing back. We stand with others in support of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe to stop the Dakota Pipeline Access,” said Jim Wylie, Pennsylvania Sierra Club Southeastern Group.

Not only have the Standing Rock Sioux and environmental groups called for a thorough review of the entire proposal, but the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Interior have as well. President Obama should use his authority to revoke the permits for Dakota Access and direct the Army Corps to conduct a thorough environmental review.

“We in Delaware stand in full solidarity with our native brothers and sisters of the Standing Rock Sioux Nation” said Stephanie Herron of the Delaware Chapter of the Sierra Club. “Access to clean, healthy drinking water is a basic human right. While we are outraged at the proposed Dakota Access Pipeline for a multitude of reason, the fact of the matter is this—and all—new fossil fuel infrastructure has to come to an end. It’s 2016 and the era of fossil fuels is over. We absolutely have the technological capacity and moral imperative to swiftly make a just transition away from dirty fossil fuels projects that threaten our water, air and climate to a clean energy future that is healthy and fair. If we want our children to have a livable future, especially here in Delaware where we are so vulnerable to sea level rise, we must join together with the Standing Rock Sioux and likeminded people from around this country to say enough is enough.”

This massive proposal will increase our impact on climate change and even could connect to refineries and future pipelines on the East Coast. At typical rates, the pipeline’s total lifecycle emissions would amount to 101.4 million metric tons of CO2 per year. These emissions are equivalent to 29.5 coal plants or the average emissions of 21.4 million US passenger vehicles. In total, the pipeline will be just seven miles shorter than the rejected Keystone XL pipeline.

“ The Obama Administration must reject the Dakota Access pipeline like they did with Keystone XL. Just like Keystone XL, this pipeline will exacerbate climate change, cutting an ugly scar through communities, and risk water supply resources. In our region, we are facing a similar battle against dangerous and destructive pipelines. There are over 15 proposed pipelines in the Delaware River Valley that threaten our drinking water and environment like Sunoco's Mariner East project,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “The more we can stop pipelines, the more we can put an end to fracking and keep fossil fuels in the ground. By denying these pipelines we will not only reduce climate impacts and protect our communities, but allow us to move forward with clean renewable energy.”

The rally took place outside the Sunoco Logistics Partners Corporate Headquarters on 3930 West Chester Pike in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania.

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Toni Granato Administrative Assistant New Jersey Sierra Club office:(609) 656-7612 https://www.facebook.com/NJSierraClub @NJSierraClub and @StopPilgrimNYNJ on Twitter
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> > > > > Received on 2016-09-22 13:19:04