Tribal citizens participate in a 2014 protest against the Keystone XL Pipeline in Washington, D.C. Photo: Victoria Pickering
Tribes in the United States and First Nations in Canada are uniting to fight the Keystone XL Pipeline. The Ponca Tribe, the Great Sioux Nation and the Blackfoot Confederacy will come together to sign the declaration in Alberta, Canada, on Wednesday, the Associated Press reports. The ceremony takes place in the city of Calgary -- where TransCanada, the firm behind the controversial project, is based. "Greed knows no limits, and those in the way are simply collateral damage to corporate profits," Chairman Brandon Sazue of the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe told the AP. Indian Country thought Keystone XL was dead after former president Barack Obama rejected a necessary permit back in November 2015. The crude oil pipeline, whose 1,200-mile route runs through treaty territory, crosses sacred and historic sites and impacts tribal water resources, was considered a detriment to the environment. But everything changed once President Donald Trump came into power. Four days after taking office, he invited TransCanada to resubmit its application. Barely two months later, the State Department announced the approval of the permit. The pipeline would carry oil extracted from Canada through Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska. From there it would connect with existing infrastructure in Kansas and in Oklahoma. The routes in South Dakota and Nebraska have not been approved at the state level even though Trump approved the presidential permit. Read More on the Story:
Keystone XL pipeline faces opposition from 'historic union' of Canada, U.S. Indigenous tribes (AP 5/16)
TransCanada looking at whether U.S. producers still interested in Keystone XL (AP 5/16)
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