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Red Power: Oglala Sioux Can Veto Keystone XL

Last updated on 2014.11.16

We can't count on the Obama Administration to protect us from Keystone XL, since they're in cahoots with TransCanada's lobbyists.

But if the cavalry won't rescue us from environmental risks and increased gas prices, maybe the Indians will:

By threading the South Dakota portion of the Keystone XL pipeline route between Pine Ridge and the nearby Rosebud reservation, whose water supply connects to that of the Oglalas, it appears TransCanada was trying to avoid dealing with the Sioux tribes, according to Oglala Sioux Tribe President John Yellow Bird Steele, who set up the meeting. "However, the company did not realize that the route crosses the Oglala Sioux Rural Water Supply System," said Steele. "The OSRWSS consists of a core pipeline and related facilities, including a reservation delivery system, that are held in trust by the United States for the Oglala Sioux Tribe."

Now, TransCanada has asked federal agencies for an easement (right of way) that would allow Keystone XL to transport a particularly corrosive and toxic type of crude oil across the Oglala's water system in two places. Not so fast, said Steele; it's not just up to the federal government: "Under the Mni Wiconi Act, the Oglala Sioux Tribe must concur before any federal agencies can approve an easement."

Steele also laid out conditions for Oglala approval of the route, including pipeline-safety guarantees, protection of environmental and cultural resources within the Sioux 1851 and 1868 treaty areas, and a survey to determine damages to Sioux aboriginal-title land by a spill that occurred when the TransCanada's existing Keystone pipeline burst in North Dakota in May 2011 [Stephanie Woodard, "Planned Oil Pipeline Must Cross Pine Ridge's Water-Delivery System," Indian Country Today, 2011.09.21].

Come on, President Yellow Bird Steele! Strike a real blow for Native sovereignty: tell the White bosses in Washington and Calgary no! (And get your pal Kristi to back you up! She's all about Native sovereignty, right?)

One Comment

  1. Michael Black 2011.09.24

    You are assuming the our government will honor its agreement with the tribes. History tells a different story.

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