The Standing Rock Sioux have been found an unexpected ally in their efforts to block the Dakota Access Pipeline. Minutes after a federal judge ruled against them, the Departments of Justice, the Army, and the Interior issued a joint statement halting access to federal lands and promising a new process for decision-making about people’s concerns.

This is an unprecedented action. It comes in the context of nearly two years of protests. The Standing Rock Sioux have gathered petitions, organized events, sought support, initiated legal action, run a 500 mile relay, and reached out on social media. In April, as construction drew near, they set up an encampment to keep an eye on progress at the site. They brought together representatives from over 100 tribal nations. They have consistently argued that the pipeline disrupts sacred ground and endangers water.

The Federal government is now acknowledging "important issues raised by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and other tribal nations.” Construction on Army Corps land bordering or under Lake Oahe will be halted until the Corps "can determine whether it will need to reconsider any of its previous decisions regarding the Lake Oahe site under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) or other federal laws."

Furthermore, the Federal Government acknowledged this case has “highlighted the need for a serious discussion on whether there should be nationwide reform with respect to considering tribes’ views on these types of infrastructure projects. Therefore, this fall, we will invite tribes to formal, government-to-government consultations.”

The questions raised by this pipeline go to the heart of the growing crisis around water as a human right and a sacred trust. They promise to help us reconsider business as usual. Across the globe private interests are attempting to consolidate control, leaving destruction and disrespect in their wake. The resistance led by the Standing Rock Sioux to the Dakota Access Pipeline Project (DAPL) challenges this disregard for the earth and her people.

The DAPL is an intentional effort to circumvent already weak laws designed to curtail some of the worst of business practices. The pipelines is a $3.78 billion project to carry oil from the fields in North Dakota through South Dakota and Iowa, to Patoka, Illinois, where it will join up with existing pipelines to transport up to 570,000 barrels a day of crude to refineries and markets in the Gulf and on the East Coast. The pipeline is 1,172 miles long. It is just 7 miles shorter than the Keystone XL pipeline, but did not receive the same level of scrutiny because it does not cross an international border.

Further, the pipeline was fast-tracked using a law that allowed it to evade normal reviews. The Nationwide Permit 12 process treats this massive pipeline as a series of small construction sites. This enables the construction to be exempt from the environmental review required by the Clean Water Act and the National Environmental Policy Act.

Earlier plans for the pipeline had it crossing under the Missouri River north of Bismarck. Authorities halted this effort, re-routing it toward the reservation and Lake Oahe, because they did not want to risk contaminating the river directly. Contaminating Native lands, however, is a long standing practice.

Over the last few years we have seen a growing consciousness about the sacredness of water. Oil spills, industrial contamination, algae blooms, and lead poisoning have made national headlines. Water shut offs in Detroit have been an international scandal.

The issues raised by the Standing Rock Sioux are helping to forge a new understanding that water is a human right and a sacred trust that we are all called upon to protect.