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Friday, October 3, 2003

The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the federal Surface Transportation Board to take another look at a proposed railroad expansion that would run through the sacred Black Hills.

Lakota activists and non-Indians in South Dakota joined together to fight the $2 billion project. But in an unanimous decision, a three-judge panel rejected claims that the project would violate treaty rights of the Sioux Nation. The panel, however, said the STB should correct some environmental and historic preservation issues.

Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern plans to lay down almost 300 miles of new track from the Black Hills in South Dakota to the Powder River Basin coal mines of Wyoming. The company also wants to replace 600 miles of existing track in South Dakota and Minnesota.

Get the Story:
DM&E may get �second look' (The Rapid City Journal 10/3)

Get the Decision:
MID STATES COALITION FOR PROGRESS v. SURFACE TRANSP. BD., No. 02-1359 (October 2, 2003)

Relevant Links:
Surface Transportation Board - http://www.stb.dot.gov
DM&E - http://www.dmerail.com

Related Stories:
Janklow battles over Black Hills rail (05/03)
Native candidate wants Black Hills rail (5/1)
Tribes oppose Black Hills rail (4/10)
Editorial: Black Hills rail needed (2/12)
Black Hills rail given approval (1/31)
Editorial: Black Hills rail promising (12/17)
Black Hills rail opponents rally (12/10)
Support mixed on Black Hills railroad (11/27)
Black Hills rail gets approval (11/20)
Court battle seen over Black Hills rail (11/1)
Report due on Black Hills railroad (10/15)
Interior opposes railroad expansion (4/2)

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