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At the Behest of the White House, Army Corps of Engineers Rush Approval of Easement for Keystone Pipeline
The Army Corps of Engineers approved an easement necessary for completion of the Keystone Pipeline. This approval came nearly 2 weeks before the end of it's own established public comments period and without regard for it's own policy of waiting 14 days after Congressional notification before granting an easement.
On Jan. 24, President Trump signed a memorandum encouraging the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to expedite the review and approval process, and last week the Army said that it had been directed to expedite its review of the route.
In a letter to Congress announcing the decision, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army Paul Cramer cited the president's memorandum, saying that "consistent with the direction" in the memo, his agency would "waive its policy to wait 14 days after Congressional notification before granting an easement."
The Standing Rock Sioux are expected to pursue all legal options available to them in their attempt to stop the pipeline.