Construction can resume on a controversial stretch of the Dakota Access Pipeline in North Dakota after a federal appeals court on Sunday denied the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s request for an injunction.
The tribe sought to halt work within 20 miles of the Missouri River. Tribal officials claim past construction there destroyed burial grounds.
Despite the legal setback, the tribe vowed to continue fighting. It called on the pipeline company to comply with a request by the Army Corps of Engineers to stop work in the area. The Corps asked for the halt while it considers whether to write the easement allowing the pipeline to cross under the river.
Proponents of the project - including a union of pipeline workers - welcomed the court’s order. They say it shows the Corps of Engineers followed the law in permitting the pipeline.
