Federal judge dismisses Standing Rock’s latest lawsuit over Dakota Access Pipeline

A federal judge has dismissed the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s latest effort to shut down the Dakota Access Pipeline, ruling that the tribe must wait until the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers completes its long-delayed environmental impact study. Despite frustrations over years of inaction, Judge James Boasberg said the tribe cannot yet bring another legal challenge. The decision echoes a familiar legal stalemate, leaving the pipeline operational on Corps land without an easement while concerns about environmental risks and tribal sovereignty remain unresolved.