US Army Has Directed US Army Corps Of Engineers To Issue The Easement -- January 31, 2017

Updates

Later, 10:02 p.m. Central Time: sock it to 'em.

Remember me?
PennEnergy: ND bill heightens penalties for rioting against oil pipeline. Not yet passed; proposed.

• ten years in prison; $20,000 fine -- double current penaltie

Sounds like current law adequate (5 years in prison; $10,000 fine) if enforced, but generally North Dakota snowflakes and cupcakes in judicial robes let folks off with stern warning -- "Uffda, don't do that again." 

Original Post

 

As a reminder, with regard to DAPL, the chain of command for: the US Army Corps of Engineers

This may be of interest in 2017:

• Secretary of Defense: President-elect Trump will nominate General (ret) James Mattis
• US Secretary of the Army: Eric Fanning, as of May 17, 2016, appointed by the President; no fixed term
• US Under Secretary of the Army: Patrick J. Murphy, as of January 4, 2016; appointed by the President; term length -- no fixed term
• Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works): Jo-Ellen Darcy, appointed by President Obama, 2009; current activities -- cleaning out her office; updating her resume
• US Army Corps of Engineers: Lieutenant General Todd T. Semonite, assumed command May 19, 2016;

With that in mind, this link: US Army Corps of Engineers directed to approve Dakota Access easement.

The acting Secretary of the Army has directed the Army Corps of Engineers to issue the final remaining easement for the Dakota Access pipeline for a disputed crossing at Lake Oahe.

Robert Speer, who was designated as the acting Secretary of the U.S. Army on January 20, 2017, notified Congress Tuesday that the agency will be granting the easement.

The move follows a memo from President Donald Trump on Jan. 24 directing that the agency expedite reviews and approvals for the project, which was proposed to carry Bakken crude 1,172 miles across four states to Illinois, where it can more readily access refineries that handle light sweet crude.

Proponents of the pipeline have said it will take thousands of trucks off the road and represents the safest way of transporting crude, while opponents have questioned whether safety measures at Lake Oahe will be adequate to protect the water, which provides drinking water to the tribe and many others downstream.

Delegates for North Dakota have generally supported completion of the project, seen by industry leaders as critical infrastructure for the Bakken’s future.

Apparently US Secretary of the Army, Patrick J Murphy tendered his resignation January 20, 2017.

I'm having trouble reading the tea leaves, I've haven't really been following this story lately, but what little I've read, the Standing Rock Reservation elders have pretty much thrown in the towel.

One wonders how much the casino has lost over the past few months.

A reader tells me that 600 protesters are due in North Dakota court. How many show up is another issue, but for sure, those 600 are not going to be protesting.

Without those 600 the protesting cause is pretty much dead.

Unless someone finds a judge who wants to put a "stay" on the US Army directive, my hunch is "they" can complete the pipeline in less than a month.