The controversial Dakota Access Pipeline continues to make headlines all over the United States, so we decided to compile a post with some facts that will help you to understand the controversy behind this oil pipeline project. With the incoming changes from the new presidential administration, the chances of the pipeline getting approved are quite high, so it is important to know what this project is about and what impacts on US citizens, environment, and economy it might have. Learn more about the Dakota Access Pipeline with these 25 Astonishing Dakota Access Pipeline Facts You Might Want To Know.
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The Dakota Access Pipeline (also known as the Bakken Pipeline) is a 1,172-mile-long (1,886 km) underground crude oil pipeline project in the United States planned by Dakota Access, LLC, a subsidiary of the Dallas corporation Energy Transfer Partners, L.P.
Source: wikipedia.org, 24
The pipeline would run from the Northwestern North Dakota Bakken formation and Three Forks hydrofracturing sites starting in Stanley, North Dakota and travel in a southeastward direction through South Dakota and Iowa to end at the oil tank farm near Patoka, Illinois.
Source: wikipedia.org,23
Worth $3.7 billion, the Dakota Access Pipeline project is due for delivery on January 1, 2017.
Source: wikipedia.org 22
The diameter of the pipeline is 30 in (76 cm), which is wide enough to transport up to 570,000 barrels of crude oil every day.
Source: wikipedia.org, 21
The company (Dakota Access, LLC) estimated the project will create up to 40 permanent jobs and 8,200-12,000 temporary jobs.
Source: wikipedia.org, image: commons.wikimedia.org (public domain)20
Since the very beginning, the project has been controversial regarding its necessity and potential harm to the environment. There have been numerous protests against the project in several US states.
Source: wikipedia.org,19
The project has also been opposed by many Native Americans, particularly Sioux tribes who say the pipeline threatens their environmental and economic well-being, and would destroy sites of great historic, religious, and cultural significance. Protests at the pipeline construction sites in North Dakota that began in the spring of 2016 were so massive they actually became the largest gathering of Native Americans in the past hundred years.
Source: wikipedia.org18
The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe says the pipeline could cause millions of peoples’ water supply to be contaminated if there are any disruptions or leaks in the pipeline.
Source: earthday.org,17
CEO Kelcy Warren of Energy Transfer Partners recently said, “I'm 100 percent sure that the pipeline will be approved by a Trump administration.” In June, Warren donated $100,000 to the Trump Victory Fund, a joint fundraising committee for Trump's campaign.
Source: nbcnews.com,16
Environmental activists say the pipeline would contribute man-made climate change by building up the country’s oil infrastructure. They insist that fossil fuels need to be kept in the ground to protect the world from the worst effects of climate change.
Source: time.com, image: pixabay.com (public domain)15
According to Dakota Access, 57% of the pipeline will be manufactured in the United States.
Source: daplpipelinefacts.com, image: pixabay.com (public domain)14
The protesters against the project, who include representatives of more than 200 Native American tribes, identify themselves as “water protectors.”
Source: huffingtonpost.com, image: en.wikipedia.org (public domain: author's life + 70 yrs) 13
The protest has been joined by many celebrities such as Mark Ruffalo, Susan Sarandon, Ben Affleck, Leonardo DiCaprio, Shailene Woodley, Amy Goodman, Deia Schlosberg and others.
Source: foxnews.com,12
Proponents of the project say it will help the US to attain energy independence and free up railroads, which will allow farmers to ship more Midwest grain.
Source: wikipedia.org, 11
In September 2016, the U.S. Department of Justice received more than 33,000 petitions to review all permits issued for the project and order a full review of its environmental effects.
Source: wikipedia.org, image: pixabay.com (public domain)10
As of November 2016, police have arrested more than 400 protesters. Criticized for inappropriately aggressive response, the police have even been accused of human rights violations.
Source: theguardian.com, image: commons.wikimedia.org (public domain) 9
In Late October, when she was the Democratic presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton released a short statement on the issue, saying that “all voices should be heard,” adding, “It’s important that on the ground in North Dakota, everyone respects demonstrators’ rights to protest peacefully and workers’ rights to do their jobs safely.”
Source: theguardian.com, image: en.wikipedia.org (public domain)8
The most dedicated protesters are determined to remain at the site through winter, even though the average low temperature in North Dakota reaches nearly 0 F (-17.8 C) in those months.
Source: time.com, image: commons.wikimedia.org (public domain)7
US senator Bernie Sanders, who lost to Clinton in the Democratic primary, has issued numerous statements in support of the protest against the project.
Source: theguardian.com 6
Conservation groups worry about the project's impacts on people's safety, air, water, wildlife and farming because of potential failures and leakages of the pipeline. In the years 1996-2015, there was a total of 11,199 pipeline incidents in the United States. This is an average of 560 incidents per year for all types of pipelines. These incidents contributed to a total of 360 fatalities and 1,376 injuries.
Source: wikipedia.org,5
The national corporate media ignored the protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline as long as they could. For long months, despite the DAPL emergence into the national narrative, ABC and NBC refused to air any coverage about it.
Source: zerohedge.com 4
There have been successful crowdfunding campaigns on behalf of the protesters at Standing Rock that have raised in excess of $1 million.
Source: www.merryjane.com 3
The developers estimate that the pipeline will generate $156 million in sales and income taxes.
Source: people.com 2
According to court records, Energy Transfer Partners has already changed the route – upwards of 140 times in North Dakota alone – to avoid building over Native Americans' burial sites.
Source: ctvnews.ca1
Trump’s financial disclosure forms show he has invested between $500,000 and $1,000,000 in Energy Transfer Partners. He has a further US$500,000 to US$1,000,000 in Phillips 66, which will have a 25% stake in the Dakota Access pipeline once it is completed.
Source: ctvnews.ca Photos: 25. Tony Webster via Flickr, 24. Joshua Doubek/wikimedia commons, 23. Carl Wycoff via Flickr, 22. Maureen via Flickr, 20. Fibonacci Blue via Flickr, 19. Fibonacci Blue via Flickr, 18. McKay Savage via flickr, 17. Gage Skidmore via Flickr, 13. Gage Skidmore via Flickr, 12. Roger Templeman via geograph.org.uk, 7. Gage Skidmore via Flickr, 6. Grand Canyon’s National Park via Flickr, 5. Fibonacci Blue via Flickr, 4. Fibonacci Blue via Flickr, 3. Pictures of Money via Flickr, 2. Alexius Horatius/wikimedia commons, 1. Gage Skidmore via Flickr
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