Gas pipeline approved near pipestone quarry sacred to Indigenous people, with conditions
Gas pipeline approved near pipestone quarry sacred to Indigenous people, with conditions
The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission approved a permit to Magellan Pipeline Company along a route near a pipestone quarry considered sacred by many tribal nations. Tribal input over the past year resulted in the commission requiring the pipeline company to consult with tribes.
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.