|
?:reviewBody
|
-
In mid-2016, protests grew in North Dakota over the planned construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline, which is planned to transport approximately 470,000 barrels of crude oil per day. Opponents of the pipeline held that it would pose a severe danger of contamination (via leakage) to the the only source of water for the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation and would threaten historically significant tribal sites: The protests culminated in social media rumors holding that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) took punitive measures against Native American protesters, including removing tanks supplying drinking water to those demonstrating on tribal land near Cannon Ball. Most reports maintained that DHS remove[d the] water supply from the protesters' campsite on 22 August 2016: Additional coverage included vague details about a purported escalation in the conflict between DHS and the Dakota Access Pipeline protesters, and many articles referenced (but did not explain) a dispute over lasers: We contacted the North Dakota Department of Emergency Services (NDDES) Public Information Officer Cecily Fong, who was aware of social media rumors claiming that the agency cut off the water supply to the protests in an effort to halt demonstrations (and presumably enable the construction of the pipeline unhindered). Fong told us that many of the reports on social media were inaccurate and provided more information about to the agency's role in supporting and assisting management of the protests. Fong confirmed that media reports accurately estimated about 3,000 protesters had gathered at the demonstration's peak, noting that the agency initiated support for the tribes due to the unprecedented scale of the protests and related safety concerns. She clarified that in no way, shape, or form was any water supply to the tribe cut off on 22 August 2016, or on any other date. Among mitigating factors described by Fong was the existence of at least two protest sites: one primary and legally sanctioned site established on tribal property, and a secondary protest site illegally situated on land held by the U.S. Army Corps. Fong said that NDDES supplied two water tanks to the protesters as a supportive measure after anticipating a large turnout, but the tanks were removed by NDDES when they were found to have been established at the second site, on which the state had no permission to store assets. Those tanks were not removed as a punitive measure, nor did they constitute the entirety of the water supply available to tribe members and demonstrators. Fong emphasized that the NDDES does not have the authority to carry out sanctions against persons engaged in lawful protest activity on tribal land. Fong noted that related rumors held protesters were unable to broadcast activities taking place the protest site due to government interference with cell phones. However, she told us that the connectivity problems stemmed from an influx of protesters to a remote location and stated that NDDES had worked with mobile carriers to enable media and social media coverage of the protests by establishing a repeater tower. Fong also said related rumors held that access to the site by persons attempting to provide maintenance to portable sanitary facilities had been restricted by the state, but she maintained that NDDES had investigated those rumors to ensure the facilities remained in adequate condition and learned that no maintenance personnel had attempted to pass through a checkpoint during the period of time in question. Although the legal protest site largely didn't pose a problem, Fong said that spillover protests led to vandalism and the disruption of private landowners' use of their property. Moreover, local residents complained about the extralegal demonstrations and requested additional state involvement. With respect to lasers, Fong clarified that aerial surveying of the site by emergency management officials was twice disrupted by protesters using lasers, in one instance dangerously obstructing the sight of a pilot. It is a federal crime to aim a laser pointer at an aircraft under any circumstances. The NNDES summarized all these related issues themselves thusly:
(en)
|
![[This page as RDF]](http://data.gesis.org/claimskg/static/rdf-icon.gif){kind=icon}