The Dakota Access Pipeline, which was and remains opposed by environmentalists and practically every indigenous tribe in North America and beyond, is already springing leaks before going into operation.

Because the oil companies aren't exactly forthcoming with this information, opponents have had to rely on reports submitted to the US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration as well as local health departments.  So it's just now that they're confirming that the latest known leak occurred in early March in Watford City, South Dakota.  A half a barrel of oil spilled from an above-ground section of the pipeline; contaminated snow and soil were removed.

"We have always said it is not a matter of it, but when," said Standing Rock Sioux Reservation tribal attorney Jan Hasselman said after the South Dakota leak.  "Pipelines spill and leak.  It's just a fact."

Energy Transfer Partners has insisted that the project is safe.  Two other leaks occurred during other tests prior to the March incident.  The company aims to have the pipeline begin operation on 1 June, when it will transmit oil from the shale oil fields of North Dakota down to a distribution point in Illinois, and then on to the Gulf of Mexico and the export market.

But the pipeline crosses the Missouri River at several points, and a spill could contaminate the all-important waterway.  Nowhere is this more so than at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation.  The Dakota Access Pipeline was built right over the spot where the tribe draws its water, and in the arid upper plains, there aren't many back-up plans available. 

In 2016, the Standing Rock Tribe's protests ignited the public consciousness, with environmentalists, hippies, and delegations from hundreds of indigenous groups traveling across the country to block construction crews.  The protesters won some delays when Barack Obama was president, but the tide turned when Donald Trump was allowed to infest the White House.