In a victory for Native Americans and protesters who have been on the land for several months, the Army Corp of Engineers officially turned down a permit for a controversial pipeline route through a portion of North Dakota.

The 1,172-mile pipeline was supposed to run under Lake Oahe. The Standing Sioux tribe and protesters have been blocking the route saying that the pipeline could contaminate the water supply and would also damage sacred tribal lands.

The Corp in a statement said that they would be "undertaking an environmental impact statement to look at possible alternative routes."  A spokesperson for the company that owns the pipeline could not be reached for comment.

 

[via Gazette]

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