Ruling On The Pipeline? Next Week…Maybe…
A federal judge says he'll likely decide within a week whether to temporarily halt construction of the final section of the Dakota Access pipeline, which could be able to move oil within weeks.
U.S. District Judge James Boasberg held a hearing Tuesday in a lawsuit brought by the Standing Rock and Cheyenne River Sioux tribes, but he didn't immediately rule.
The tribes want him to direct the Army Corps of Engineers to withdraw permission for Texas-based developer Energy Transfer Partners to lay pipe under Lake Oahe in North Dakota.
The stretch under the Missouri River reservoir is the last piece of construction for the $3.8 billion pipeline to move oil from North Dakota to Illinois.
The tribes say the pipeline threatens their right to practice their religion, which relies on clean water. The Corps and company say the claim is lacking.