Native Americans vs The Line 3 Pipeline Expansion (Tara Houska)

We speak to Tara Houska, Tribal attorney and land defender. She discusses the Line 3 Pipeline expansion, which would bring almost a million barrels of tar sands per day from Alberta, Canada to Wisconsin, how the pipeline breaks treaties signed with Native American tribes and further erases indigenous history, the need for the Biden administration to stop the pipeline expansion in the fight against climate change and much more!

We contacted Enbridge about the allegations in this show and they said:

“Existing Line 3 is one of several Enbridge pipelines that currently cross all of northern Minnesota and have coexisted with its Native communities and the most productive wild rice waters in the nation for over 70 years.

The two Native nations crossed by Line 3, the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe both support the replacement project which will restore the pipeline’s original design capacity, not expand it.

An extensive Tribal Cultural Resource Survey of the entire route of the pipeline helped inform over 320 changes to the project’s route – which follows existing pipelines, electric lines and utility corridors.

The replacement of Line 3 is the most studied pipeline in state history, which after six years has included a 13,500 page Environmental Impact Statement, 70 public input hearings, four separate reviews by independent administrative law judges, multiple reviews and approvals from the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa (The only Tribe with “Treatment as a State” water quality authority along the pipeline route).

The project is now being built under the supervision of tribal monitors with authority to stop construction, who ensure that important cultural resources are protected.

The replacement of existing Line 3 is a safety and maintenance focused project that was ordered and noted in a federal consent decree during the Obama Administration. Work has already been completed in Canada, North Dakota, Wisconsin and is approaching 50% completion in Minnesota. The project is providing significant economic benefits for counties, small businesses, Native American communities, and union members – including creating 5,200 family-sustaining construction jobs, and millions of dollars in local spending and tax revenues.

There are no “man camps” on the project.
Enbridge has zero tolerance for illegal and exploitive behavior. Two individuals who formerly worked for our contractor were arrested and charged in a prostitution sting in Itasca County. Both individuals were immediately fired upon learning of their arrests.
Pursuant to the project’s route permit, Enbridge developed and implemented a Human Trafficking Prevention Plan in cooperation with several Tribal and State entities. All pipeline workers on Line 3 receive human trafficking awareness training prior to beginning work on the project. The training provides insight and education on human trafficking in Minnesota, including stories from survivors, impacts on Native communities, local programs and resources, and information about how to spot and report suspected trafficking situations.”