In today’s society, people are always looking forward to the short-term outcomes of our actions without considering the long-term implications. For instance, the North Dakota Access Pipeline is a 3.7 billion dollar project that will facilitate the transportation of 470,000 crude oil barrels daily to refineries by an underground pipeline (Narayan). The pipeline alignment will be passing through North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, and Illinois states and cross various rivers (Yan). The implications of this project has negative long-term effects that could affect the environment and culture of the resident Native American tribe, Standing Rock Sioux tribe. Although this project might have a beneficial short-term economic outcome, the long-term implications
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Oil leaks can occur below riverbeds, which could cause the oil to flow upwards towards the surface water or groundwater. For example, in the Deepwater Horizon event, an oil rig main pipeline ruptured in the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf Oil Spill). The rupture was the worst U.S. catastrophic oil spill, and it resulted in an estimated 3.19 million barrels of oil spread in the Gulf of Mexico. During the spill, a 22-mile long oil plume was reported, thus removing the spilled oil from the environment proved to be a difficult task (Gulf Oil Spill). The impact on the environment was fatal, the spill killed and contaminated a great amount of the marine life. The oil spill formed large slicks that floated in the ocean, and these slicks wreaked havoc on the coastal ecosystems and animals that they came in contact with. In reflection of this event in our U.S. environmental history, oil leaks are of high concern to the water supply in this project. There is also an implied risk, not only to local water, but also to downstream waters since the pipeline crosses a number or rivers. For example, if a leak were to occur in the Mississippi River, then not only will it affect the local communities but also communities located downstream. It could affect its source of life because contaminated water would prevent the growth of any living thing, causing a …show more content…
The North Dakota Access pipeline will bring income and work in the short-term. However, the long-term effects of this project are a loss of a tribe’s sacred history and the possibility of contamination in the local and regional areas of construction. When taking into account all outcomes of this project, it seems that negative outcomes outnumber the positive ones. The project could turn out to be another Deepwater Horizon event, where the oil company never thought of the worst case scenarios and what possible consequences could result. They were too worried about short-term and did not see the implied long-term consequences. In researching about the North Dakota Access Pipeline I discovered that the battle against this project is not just about the environment and the property of the tribe. In reality, it is about protecting what is sacred for the tribe, which is more than just water and land. It is about their identity, their history, and their right to
Oil leaks can occur below riverbeds, which could cause the oil to flow upwards towards the surface water or groundwater. For example, in the Deepwater Horizon event, an oil rig main pipeline ruptured in the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf Oil Spill). The rupture was the worst U.S. catastrophic oil spill, and it resulted in an estimated 3.19 million barrels of oil spread in the Gulf of Mexico. During the spill, a 22-mile long oil plume was reported, thus removing the spilled oil from the environment proved to be a difficult task (Gulf Oil Spill). The impact on the environment was fatal, the spill killed and contaminated a great amount of the marine life. The oil spill formed large slicks that floated in the ocean, and these slicks wreaked havoc on the coastal ecosystems and animals that they came in contact with. In reflection of this event in our U.S. environmental history, oil leaks are of high concern to the water supply in this project. There is also an implied risk, not only to local water, but also to downstream waters since the pipeline crosses a number or rivers. For example, if a leak were to occur in the Mississippi River, then not only will it affect the local communities but also communities located downstream. It could affect its source of life because contaminated water would prevent the growth of any living thing, causing a …show more content…
The North Dakota Access pipeline will bring income and work in the short-term. However, the long-term effects of this project are a loss of a tribe’s sacred history and the possibility of contamination in the local and regional areas of construction. When taking into account all outcomes of this project, it seems that negative outcomes outnumber the positive ones. The project could turn out to be another Deepwater Horizon event, where the oil company never thought of the worst case scenarios and what possible consequences could result. They were too worried about short-term and did not see the implied long-term consequences. In researching about the North Dakota Access Pipeline I discovered that the battle against this project is not just about the environment and the property of the tribe. In reality, it is about protecting what is sacred for the tribe, which is more than just water and land. It is about their identity, their history, and their right to