INFORUM By: Adam Willis | Jan 26th 2021
The latest ruling comes just days after the inauguration of President Joe Biden, who has laid out an aggressive plan to address climate change that has generated anxiety among oil industry executives.
A federal appeals court upheld a ruling Tuesday, Jan. 26, requiring an additional environmental review of the Dakota Access Pipeline, a decision that could escalate pressure on the embattled project to shut down even as the court stopped short of mandating this step itself.
A panel of three judges for the U.S. District Court of Appeals from the District of Columbia Circuit unanimously agreed with a previous ruling that DAPL's operations at its Missouri River crossing near the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation are illegal, requiring the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to proceed with an extensive review of potential environmental hazards at that location.
And though the court cleared the pipeline to keep running, the decision leaves an open path for the newly inaugurated President Joe Biden to shut it down.
"It's a very significant win for the tribes, and it affirms what we've been saying since 2016," said Jan Hasselman, an attorney representing Standing Rock. "The ball is now in the Biden administration's court."
The decision is another blow to Dakota Access in a winding legal battle that has left its fate in limbo for several years and which has escalated with the start of Biden's term and his progressive climate agenda. A pending lower court decision could still shut down the pipeline through legal channels, and early moves from the Biden administration have prompted speculation about his intentions for Dakota Access.
More:
https://www.inforum.com/business/energy-and-mining/6857732-Federal-court-delivers-blow-to-Dakota-Access-as-Biden-presidency-leaves-pipelines-fate-in-question
