The Obama administration is planning to give a final approval needed for the Dakota Access oil pipeline as soon as Monday, Politico reports.
The approval would be a major defeat to environmentalists, the Standing Rock Sioux tribe and its American Indian allies, just days after Republican Donald Trump’s election to be the next president.
Opponents of the $3.7 billion pipeline say it would destroy sites that are sacred to the Standing Rock Sioux and threaten its water supply, and that further build-outs of fossil fuel infrastructure threaten to exacerbate climate change.
Politico reported Friday that the Army Corps of Engineers is planning as soon as Monday to give the greenlight to an easement for developer Energy Transfer Partners to build the pipeline under Lake Oahe in North Dakota, citing two sources familiar with the decision.
The Army Corps did not return a request for comment on the report.
The Army Corps’ decision regarding the pipeline has been on hold since September, when the agency decided to pause its consideration while it reviews its consultations with Indian tribes.
The site of the pipeline near the lake has been home to protesters for months now. Dozens of pipeline opponents have been camped out there, the site of numerous violent skirmishes with law enforcement.
Greens have sought to turn Dakota Access into a new iteration of the Keystone XL pipeline, making it a battle over the future of fossil fuels and energy policy.
The oil industry and the pipeline’s supporters, meanwhile have framed the issue as a debate over the rule of law. They’ve accused Obama of ignoring the law by sitting on the easement.
Obama said earlier this month that his administration was looking into options to reroute the pipeline away from the Standing Rock reservation.
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