By: Dallas Goldtooth, Indigenous Environmental Network.

Hau Mitakuyepi! Hello relatives!

We have some great news for you!

Last night, a federal judge in Montana invalidated Trump’s permit for Keystone XL, ruling that the Administration violated key laws when it approved the pipeline.

Furthermore, the judge issued an injunction stopping all construction and associated facilities of the tar sands project, which includes any proposed man camps or pipeline storage yards!

This lawsuit was filed by Indigenous Environmental Network, the Northern Plains Resource Council, and five other groups. This decision means that no work can go forward until the government completes a new supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Keystone XL, which can take up to 12 months.

Lastly, Judge Morris ordered that the Trump administration’s new supplemental environmental impact statement address the following 3 questions:

• What will be the climate impacts of the Keystone XL pipeline? Primarily, how will it contribute to greenhouse gas emissions?
• President Obama rejected the cross-border presidential permit for KXL back in 2015. What was the reason(s) President Trump reversed that decision.
• How does the market price for tar sands oil affect the viability of #KXL? Prices have plummeted since KXL was first proposed, does it even make sense to build this pipeline?

In addition, the judge made the following orders:

• The State Department must conduct cultural survey for over 1,000 acres of land that never got surveyed. Meaning tribal nations MUST be consulted and included.
• The report must update modeling of potential oil spills and recommended mitigation measures along its route.

Look relatives, this is a tremendous battle victory, we just threw a massive wrench in the aspirations of TransCanada, but the fight isn’t over. Let’s enjoy this, let’s celebrate this, and let’s continue to fight this dirty tar sands project!

We’ve learned from past experiences that pipeline companies don’t like to play by the rules, so we remain vigilant and will be monitoring TransCanada to see if they will break the law by constructing along the route.

We ask that you stay vigilant with us! Continue to demand divestment from TransCanada! Continue to share our struggle via social media! We are all in this together, relatives!