March 19, 2024

Army Corps issues final OK for Dakota Access in Iowa

Pipeline moving from Newton staging area to construction site

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued final approval Tuesday for Dakota Access crude oil pipeline workers to bore underneath three major waterways in Iowa, clearing the final regulatory hoop for the project in Iowa.

In a letter to Dakota Access, LLC dated July 25, representatives from the Army Corps Rock Island District said project permit requests have been reviewed under standards of the Clean Water Act and the Rivers and Harbors Act and gave the OK to begin horizontal drilling underneath regulated waterways which include the Missouri, Mississippi and Des Moines Rivers.

Lisa Dillinger with Granado Communications Group, and a spokesperson for Dakota Access, said Wednesday the Army Corps’ decision will allow the construction pace to increase.

“Yesterday, we received the Nationwide Permit 12 from the Army Corps of Engineers for all four states,” she said. “We can now move forward with construction in all areas as quickly as possible in order to limit construction activities to one growing season and be in service by the end of this year.”

The decision comes just a day before pipeline crews began moving 30-inch pipe from a stockpile in a farm field three miles east of Newton, to construction sites in Jasper County. The stockpile north of Highway 6 East on East 76th Street North has been building since April 2015.

Crews visible from Highway F48 and Interstate 80 could be seen in the last week removing crops and separating topsoil on the pipeline route.

Dillinger told the Newton Daily News July 18 that construction is underway on all four “spreads” of the 343-mile Iowa pipeline route.

The early stages of construction include staking, grading, clearing, temporary road construction, and building of temporary fences and gates. Some construction areas in southeast Iowa, she said, began in early June and are stringing and welding pipe.

The Iowa Utilities Board provisionally approved Dakota Access’ construction permits for the Iowa segment of the $3.8 billion crude oil pipeline in March. The three-member panel agreed in June to allow construction on the project to begin in areas where Dakota Access had obtained all necessary easements, state and federal permits.

However, multiple lawsuits are pending challenging the IUB’s decision, claiming the board does not have the authority to grant the right of eminent domain for a private project not conducted by a public utility.

Dakota Access — a subsidiary of Energy Transfer Partners — is building the 1,168-mile crude oil pipeline through four states and 18 Iowa counties. It will connect the Bakken Oil Fields of North Dakota to a hub in Patoka, Ill. en route to gulf coast refineries.

According to Dakota Access, it takes approximately 30-45 days to construct about 30 miles of pipe, not including restoration activities. As construction ramps up, there will be 500 to 800 construction workers per spread. The company claims a total up to 4,000 union workers will operate in each of the four states.

Dillinger would not release construction timelines, however, with 34 miles of pipeline expected in Jasper County and keeping Dakota Access’ stated construction speed, the spokesperson said pipeline workers could be in Jasper County for one to two months — not counting land restoration.

Following the Army Corps decision, two of the primary opposition groups released a joint statement Wednesday condemning the ruling and the project. Representatives for Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement and Bold Iowa — the local chapter of a national group fighting fossil fuel infrastructure expansion — said they would continue to fight the project.

“We remain steadfast that oil will not flow through this pipeline,” said Adam Mason, state policy director at Iowa CCI. “We’ll continue to fight tooth and nail – this is not a done deal. We need to leave this oil in the ground and turn the corner to true renewable energies like wind and solar that will create good jobs, protect our environment and build our communities.”

Former Iowa state legislator and Bold Iowa director Ed Fallon placed blame not only on the IUB, but also criticized President Obama Wednesday for not intervening in the Dakota Access project.

“I’m disappointed in the Corps but even more disappointed in President Obama, who has the power to stop this pipeline yet has done nothing,” Fallon said. “When the president sees hundreds of us getting arrested, standing side-by-side with our landowner and tribal allies as we block construction of the pipeline, then maybe he’ll do something.”

The Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now Coalition represents several industries impacted by energy security and economic development issues. MAIN chairman and Iowa farmer Ed Wiederstein released a statement Wednesday praising the Army Corps decision.

“As a local farmer, I have long supported construction of this project and am pleased that today it becomes a reality,” Wiederstein said. “It will provide untold benefits to the security of our nation and our economic future. The agriculture industry, in particular, relies on affordable, easy to access energy and the Dakota Access project will provide value for decades to come for the thousands of farmers across our region.”

Contact Mike Mendenhall at mmendenhall@newtondailynews.com