The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says it will allow the pipeline to cross under the Missouri River, cutting short an environmental impact assessment and removing the final barrier to construction.
The Army Corps of Engineers has granted the final easement needed to finish the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline, according to a court filing Tuesday.
While Barack Obama's energy policy focused on renewable power and climate change, President Trump is focused on extracting fossil fuels. Among big changes, some predict higher prices at the pump.
On Thursday the GOP-controlled House voted to overturn an Obama administration rule designed to keep firearms out of the hands of some people deemed mentally ill.
Proponents of the Dakota Access Pipeline say final federal permission for the project is ensured. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe says the Army must complete an environmental review already underway.
Members of the North Dakota congressional delegation say the acting secretary of the army has ordered the Corps of Engineers to proceed with an easement needed to complete the pipeline.
The projects will need to be approved through the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, but a resignation will leave that five-person panel with just two members — too few for a quorum.
The pipeline would transport crude oil from Alberta to Nebraska. President Obama blocked it. President Trump told the company to refile for a permit and promised to speed the approval process.
The leak from an underground pipeline in north-central Iowa was first discovered in a field on Wednesday morning. Crews for the company, Magellan Midstream Partners, are working to clean it up.