United Church of Christ - Take a Stand on the Sandpiper Pipeline!

Take a Stand on the Sandpiper Pipeline!

white earth tribe wild rice harvest While major media attention focuses on the Keystone XL Pipeline, other pipelines are also in the works and could be equally as devastating to the land and waters through which they would travel.

Enbridge is currently seeking a permit from the Minnesota Department of Commerce to build the Sandpiper Pipeline from the Bakken Shale basin of western North Dakota through Northern Minnesota to Lake Superior. This pipeline, if constructed, could carry 375,000 barrels of fracked Bakken oil per day through pristine areas of lakes and rivers, including the headwaters of the Mississippi River. From these waterways, the Anishinaabeg people (whose treaty area this pipeline crosses) harvest hundreds of thousands of pounds of wild rice every year, both as a staple for their diet and also to generate a modest income.

An oil spill in this region would cause environmental and economic devastation, endangering regional fisheries, which generate $7.2 billion per year and support 49,000 jobs. No Environmental Impact Statement for this pipeline has been required.

The Minnesota Department of Commerce is receiving public comments about this pipeline proposal through May 30. Take action now - Send the letter below or file your comments directly with the Minnesota Department of Commerce via their website.

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Click the Send Message button to send your letter to these decision makers:
- Environmental Review Manager, Minnesota Department of Commerce Larry Hartman

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Docket number: # 13-474

Dear [Decision Maker],

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As a person of faith, I request that you deny the permit of Enbridge's proposed Sandpiper Pipeline in Northern Minnesota. Although this proposed pipeline threatens the people, lifeways, watersheds, and wildlife of greater Minnesota, it has not thus far required so much as an Environmental Impact Statement.

One-fifth of the world's fresh surface water supply lies in Minnesota, and we are called to protect it and to be good stewards of all creation. Wild rice beds, lakes, and rivers (including the headwaters of the Mississippi) are precious. Regional fisheries generate $7.2 billion annually and support 49,000 jobs.

The wild rice that grows on the lakes and rivers of Northern Minnesota has sustained the lifeway of traditional harvesters for thousands of years but could be destroyed by an oil spill from this pipeline, which is proposed to run less than one mile from Upper Rice Lake. The rice is the lifeblood of the Anishinaabeg people (whose treaty area this pipeline crosses) and the lifeblood of the region. By the Treaty of 1855 and subsequent treaties, the Anishinaabeg are guaranteed the right to hunt, fish, harvest wild rice, and otherwise earn a modest living from this land. These rights have consistently been upheld in the courts.

In addition, the Sandpiper Pipeline will further enable the creation of a national sacrifice area in the Bakken shale oil region of western North Dakota, which is being destroyed by fracking. This land and this water are precious and they are endangered. Fracked oil from the Bakken deposit poses a serious risk to North Dakota and Minnesota. In the past three years alone there have been over 300 spills in North Dakota, many never reported widely. In September 2013, over 800,000 gallons spilled in a remote area of North Dakota, covering over seven acres of farm land. This spill went on for days undetected. Spills like this in Minnesota's northern lakes region would be devastating.

I oppose this pipeline. I request that you deny Enbridge the permit needed to construct it. Please support a just and fair commenting process, and protect families, communities, and the environment from the harm these pipelines cause.

Sincerely,

[Your Name]
[Your Address]
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[Your Email]