Gas pipeline approved near pipestone quarry sacred to Indigenous people, with conditions

Regulators issued a permit to Magellan Pipeline Company at a hearing last week, keeping in view the objections of several tribal nations who say the pipestone quarried at the national monument and the surrounding areas are central to the spiritual practices of tribes across the continent.  

“It’s just too much of a risk,” Upper Sioux Community tribal historic preservation officer Samantha Odegard told the commission. 

Pipestone National Monument was created in 1937 to protect the rights of Indigenous people to quarry pipestone — or catlinite, a soft, red stone used to make pipes and works of art. The National Park Service consults with 23 tribal nations with documented ties to the quarry on the monument’s activities. 

During the hearing an attorney for Magellan told commissioners the decision to re-open the line had to with the need to lower gas costs for consumers at the pump.

Magellan attorney Christina Brusven also said it expected those costs to increase as the company complies with a rule passed by the EPA intended to help spur domestic gas production.

Magellan supplies approximately 60 percent of the gasoline, diesel and jet fuel used by consumers in eastern North Dakota, eastern South Dakota and western Minnesota. The company is owned by ONEOK, Inc., an Oklahoma-based company. 

The line, which closed after a permit expired in 2022, pumped gas between Sioux Falls, S.D., and Marshall. It existed as a part of a much larger network of pipelines which runs between Texas and Minnesota.

Commissioners issued alternate route permit

The PUC approved the permit along an alternate route first proposed by the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe — one of several tribal nations who voiced opposition to the line.  

During the hearing, the band walked back its proposal in support of Upper Sioux Community’s proposed route “as the geographically closer tribe.” The route proposed by the Upper Sioux Community was farther away from the quarry. In a brief statement following the permitting decision, the band’s commissioner of natural resources Kelly Applegate says while they opposed the pipeline, the band proposed the alternative route “to give a wide berth to the Pipestone Monument.”

The permitted route is just over 13 miles in length and crosses approximately 200 acres of land. The route proposed by Upper Sioux is almost 19 miles and crosses approximately 285 acres of land. Both routes were longer than the routes proposed by Magellan.

During the hearing, representatives of several tribal nations including the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe and the Yankton Sioux Tribe, located in South Dakota, voiced opposition to all the proposed routes.

Commissioner John Tuma, a Republican appointee, adopted the route first proposed by Mille Lacs Band. Tuma said he wanted to avoid the most sensitive areas around the quarry, Pipestone Creek and the surrounding areas identified by tribes as culturally significant.

The commission approved the route on a vote of 3-2. Commissioner Valerie Means, a Democrat, and Commissioner Hwikwon Ham, an Independent, voted with Tuma.

According to CoriAhna Rude-Young, a spokesperson for the PUC, before construction can begin along the permitted route, Magellan must comply with the following conditions:

• A full cultural and archaeological survey for RA-01(Route Alternative-01) in coordination with Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, Upper Sioux Community, Yankton Sioux Tribe and Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe.

• Once the full survey is complete, Magellan must send the results for feedback to the tribal nations who currently consult with the National Park Service at Pipestone National Monument and engage in additional consultation with Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, Upper Sioux Community, Yankton Sioux Tribe and Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe.

• At a minimum, tribal consultation should include at least one in-person meeting with tribal representatives to occur no later than 30 days after completion of the full cultural and archaeological survey. This also includes an opportunity for feedback on the survey results.

• Magellan must submit a compliance filing to the commission providing the results of the full survey, any feedback received and names of tribal monitors who will be on site during construction. 

• After receipt of the compliance filing, the commission will schedule the matter for approval prior to construction.

‘We’ll see’

The PUC’s permitting decision was cause for caution for one community leader who testified at the hearing.  

Gabe Yellowhawk chairs the Pipestone Human Rights Commission, a group chartered by the city several years ago. He testified in opposition to construction of the pipeline. Yellowhawk said he’s glad the PUC made tribal consultation a condition of the permit.

“We’ll see ... how Magellan reacts to that, whether or not consultation takes place and if the tribes can really trust Magellan at this point to uphold consultation remains to be seen,” said Yellowhawk. 

He says he would like Magellan to respect the expertise of tribal representatives tasked with surveying culturally significant areas surrounding the monument and tribes to consult with one another before meeting with the company. 

Yellowhawk said he is concerned Magellan’s cultural surveys might be dismissive of Indigenous expertise. 

“We’ve seen in the past a lot of times, that companies have their own sort of survey techniques that they oftentimes ignore or use standards, scientific standards, to sort of dismiss Indigenous claims,” said Yellowhawk. 

A spokesperson for ONEOK stated in an email the company is “pleased” the permit has been approved and is looking forward to working with “stakeholders.” 

“Due to the cultural significance of the area, we have been working with the Tribes to gain further understanding of the cultural concerns.”
 

• Community healing: Groundbreaking honors ‘all lives lost and forever changed’ by 2005 Red Lake shootings
• ‘Rez Ball’ is a story for everyone
• Government food shortage persists in Minnesota’s tribal communities