Sierra Club action alert:
Outrageous. The Trump administration just issued the final approval for the Dakota Access Pipeline, putting corporate profits above the safety and sovereignty of the Standing Rock Sioux. Trump is blatantly ignoring the environmental review and public comment period that the Army Corps of Engineers already started under the Obama administration.
The Standing Rock Sioux recently stated, "We stand ready to fight this battle against corporate interest superseding government procedure and the health and well-being of millions of Americans." We continue to stand with them.
Take action: Send a message to the Army Corps of Engineers to hold them accountable for putting Big Oil first by stopping the environmental review of the Dakota Access Pipeline!
n December, the Obama administration ordered an environmental review of the pipeline to study the effect it would have on the Standing Rock Sioux's sacred land and Lake Oahe, the body of water the pipeline would cut through. The public comment period opened in January, and since then, the Water Protectors and their supporters have already submitted more than 200,000 comments opposing the pipeline that the Army Corps has now chosen to ignore in favor of helping Big Oil.
This blatant disregard for the rights of the Standing Rock Sioux, the need for an environmental review, and for the democratic process of considering public feedback is unacceptable. Send a message to the Army Corps of Engineers now to show them that we will not be silenced!
By casting people aside for corporate polluter profits, Donald Trump continues to show what his White House stands for: corruption, bigotry, and greed. More than 300 tribes and millions of Americans will continue to stand united in opposition to this reckless project, and we are not backing down. We will continue to stand in solidarity with the movement that is challenging the fossil fuel status quo in so many places - from the Tribes fighting the Trans Pecos Pipeline in Texas, to the First Nations and landowners fighting the Keystone XL pipeline, to the landowners challenging the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, to the Gwich'in people standing up for continued protection of the Alaska Refuge. Our movement is strong, and it cannot be silenced by this administration's blatant prioritization of corporate profits over people's wellbeing.
Last year, 15,000 people -- including veterans and hundreds of Tribes from around the world -- traveled to North Dakota to peacefully support the Standing Rock Sioux and oppose this dangerous pipeline. Their prayers and songs were increasingly met by a militarized police force using dogs, water cannons, rubber bullets, pepper spray, concussion grenades, and other tactics designed to intimidate, dehumanize, and invoke fear.
There's no question that a fair and comprehensive environmental review would show that this pipeline will threaten the safety of every community it cuts through, including the ancestral lands of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. We must hold the Army Corps of Engineers accountable for breaking their promise to Standing Rock and to the millions of people who supported them. Speak up by sending the Army Corps a letter now.
This is just the first step in our fight to hold the administration and the Army Corps of Engineers accountable, and we will continue to let you know how you can fight back. We will not back down.
Thank you for standing with Standing Rock,
Michael Brune
Executive Director, Sierra Club