It's time for anglers, hunters, and outdoor enthusiasts to stand with the Standing Rock Sioux protesters and their supporters who are determined to stop the Dakota Access Pipeline. The protesters are righteous in their opposition to this dangerous project that has threatened their water supply and impacted ancestral burial grounds, having been settled here since 1868. This group has received unfair treatment by the U.S. Government, which essentially robbed the tribe of the Black Hills area in 1877.
Beyond injustices done to the Sioux, this 1,172-mile pipeline is most likely to leak and pollute water supplies far and wide. It's slated to run beneath Lake Oahe, a blue-ribbon walleye fishery. There's huge risk for leaks into Oahe that could then flow into Missouri River reservoirs in South Dakota and into the Mississippi River. The Corps of Engineers has opposed this route, but has so far been unable to stop the oil barons. Contact legislators, sportsmen's groups and environmental watchdogs about this travesty, in the hopes that it can be stopped before it's too late.
Steve Quinn
Brainerd
