WASHINGON — A federal judge ordered the Dakota Access pipeline shut down for additional environmental review. Judge James Boasberg was unmoved by the pipeline company’s argument that the 1,100-mile pipeline had been operational for three years and had become essential to the petroleum industry’s infrastructure. Boesberg repeated his earlier view that a more extensive review is needed than the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ study that allowed the pipeline to begin pumping. He said the agency did not adequately consider how an oil spill under the Missouri River might affect the Standing Rock Sioux’s fishing and hunting rights. There could be a disproportionate effect on the tribal community, he said. The decision was a victory to the Standing Rock Sioux people. The decision, also, was a setback to President Trump’s efforts to weaken public health and environmental protections that he views as obstacles to business. Judge Boesberg’s decision mirrors another federal judge’s decision in April against the Keystone XL pipeline project.
Earlier: Judge: Pipeline a threat to species