[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 143 (Wednesday, September 21, 2016)]
[House]
[Page H5719]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    DAKOTA ACCESS PIPELINE ADVOCACY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Ruiz) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. RUIZ. Mr. Speaker, the Standing Rock Sioux and all tribes have 
the right to self-determination and a say in decisions that impact 
their health, land, and cultural preservation. It is not just a matter 
of justice, it is the law. Don't we all, as Americans, have that right? 
Isn't that the whole premise of our democracy?
  Being able to have a voice in decisions that affect our lives is the 
cornerstone of our American democracy. It thrives when we stand up, 
speak up, and voice our concerns on matters vital to our existence as 
humans, like our health, clean drinking water, and cultural survival.
  That is why I stand with the Standing Rock Sioux and hundreds of 
tribes throughout our Nation to demand that the Army Corps of Engineers 
comply with their legal trust responsibilities to protect tribal lands, 
cancel the Dakota Access Pipeline permit, conduct meaningful 
consultation with the tribes, and do a complete environmental impact 
statement.
  The Standing Rock Sioux and neighboring tribes are rightfully 
concerned that the pipeline will destroy sacred sites and that an oil 
spill would cause devastating and irreversible harm to their land, 
health, and drinking water. The proposed pipeline is over 1,000 miles 
long, transporting up to 16,000 gallons of crude oil a minute, upstream 
from the tribes' water source, near the reservation, and on tribal 
land. A leak would be devastating. It was already determined to be too 
risky to construct near the city of Bismarck's water sources.
  The Army Corps has granted construction permits, despite legal and 
noncompliance warnings by other Federal agencies. That is why, on 
September 8, I called for a systemwide GAO investigative report on 
Federal agencies' compliance with meaningful tribal consultation 
policies. On September 9, the Departments of the Interior, Justice, and 
the Army announced a pause in construction to review their compliance 
with Federal policies. I welcome this review.
  Tribes have rights under law. The Federal Government has a moral and 
legally enforceable obligation to protect tribal treaties, land, and 
resources under the Federal trust responsibility. Tribes have the right 
to regular and meaningful consultation under executive order 13175. 
Under the Historic Preservation Act, Federal agencies are required to 
be responsible stewards of our Nation's historic resources and consult 
with Indian tribes when their actions may impact sacred sites.
  Furthermore, the Army Corps, under the Clean Water Act, must protect 
our Nation's waters from contamination by conducting accurate 
environmental assessments to determine if construction permits should 
be granted. Unfortunately, the Army Corps granted a permit based on 
flawed assessments, incomplete information, and a willful disregard for 
the serious concerns raised by the tribe and other Federal agencies.
  Chairman David Achambault from the Standing Rock Sioux reported that 
they were not meaningfully consulted and didn't even know about the 
Corps' assessment until it was made public. He has serious concerns 
about the pipeline's harm to the tribe's health, water source, and 
sacred sites.
  Letters from the Department of the Interior, Environmental Protection 
Agency, and Advisory Council on Historic Preservation to the Army Corps 
list their serious concerns. They mention the potential of a 
devastating oil spill, lack of emergency response plans, desecration of 
sacred sites, noncompliance with Federal policies and laws, and even 
disagreed with the Corps' environmental assessment.
  They recommended a full environmental impact study, an expanded 
environmental justice analysis, consideration of all sacred sites along 
the path of the pipeline, and meaningful tribal consultation prior to 
any decisions.
  Moving forward, all Federal agencies must conduct meaningful tribal 
consultation and address concerns regarding risks to drinking water and 
desecration of sacred sites. The Corps must cancel their faulty permit 
near tribal land and complete a full environmental impact statement. 
Only then can the President make an informed decision to permanently 
stop construction of the pipeline on Federal property near tribal land. 
You have the authority and moral imperative to do what is right.
  Time after time, tribes have seen their treaties broken, their lands 
taken, and sacred sites desecrated. I visited with the Standing Rock 
Sioux and witnessed Native Americans from hundreds of other tribes 
standing together in peace and prayer to protect their water and 
ancestral sacred sites. I have witnessed their dignity and their 
resolve. They stand in solidarity for their full rights under Federal 
law and for their voices to be heard. They stand in unity, and I stand 
with them.

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