05.16.24

Hoeven Presses Army Corps Leaders to Issue Final Approval for DAPL

Senator Working to Resolve Prolonged EIS Process, Stressed Pipeline’s More Than Six-Year Record of Safe Operations

WASHINGTON – At a hearing of the Senate Energy and Water Development Appropriations Committee this week, Senator John Hoeven pressed U.S. Army Corps of Engineers leaders to complete the environmental impact statement (EIS) process for the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) as soon as possible. The senator:

  • Stressed the pipeline’s more than six years of safe operations, due to it having the latest technology and safeguards, as well as the critical role it plays in supporting U.S. energy security.
    • Hoeven previously worked to ensure DAPL’s continued operation while the Corps completes the court-ordered review.
  • Outlined the uncertainty the prolonged EIS process places on energy production in North Dakota and the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara (MHA) Nation. 
    • The draft EIS was released in September, but the Army Corps has yet to commit to a timeline for issuing a final EIS and Record of Decision (ROD).
  • Called on Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works Michael Connor and Army Corps Chief Lt. Gen. Scott Spellmon to resolve this prolonged EIS process and issue final approval for DAPL.

“The Dakota Access Pipeline takes the light sweet crude produced by North Dakota and the Three-Affiliated Tribes and helps deliver it to markets across the country. That’s oil we don’t need to import from our adversaries, like Russia, Venezuela and OPEC, because we produce it right here at home,” said Hoeven. “We’ve been waiting on this EIS process for years, all while the pipeline has operated without incident. Considering the pipeline’s vital importance both to our economic and national security, we need this process to be resolved and for the final approval to be issued.”

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