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STANDING ROCK — After months of protests, lawsuits and occasional clashes, oil started flowing Thursday through the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline.
The 1,172-mile-long pipeline is now in full commercial use, said Vicki Granado, spokeswoman for Energy Transfer Partners — the pipeline’s developer.
The $3.7 billion project, which stretches across four states, drew fierce resistance from the Standing Rock Sioux tribe in North Dakota, its allies and environmentalists.
“Now that the Dakota Access Pipeline is fully operational, we find it more urgent than ever that the courts and administration address the risks posed to the drinking water of millions of American citizens,” said Dave Archambault II, chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux.
It’s expected to move 470,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
Opposition to the pipeline sparked months-long protests, with as many as 10,000 people participating during the peak of the demonstrations.
The Oceti Sakowin camp, the main protest camp closest to the pipeline, was cleared in February following an emergency evacuation order signed by North Dakota Gov.
The Standing Rock Sioux tribe had also asked protesters to leave, saying the fight over the pipeline belongs in court.
In February, the US Army Corps of Engineers granted permission for the last stretch of the pipeline, under Lake Oahe, which had been opposed by Native Americans and environmentalists.