Federal Government Settles $28 Million Lawsuit with North Dakota Over Dakota Access Pipeline Protest Policing Costs

North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley announced Thursday that the federal government will pay the state nearly $28 million to settle a lawsuit stemming from the massive protests against the Dakota Access pipeline nearly a decade ago. The settlement sum matches the approximately $27.8 million award determined by U.S. District Judge Daniel Traynor after a trial in which he found the federal government liable on all claims, including negligence, gross negligence, civil trespass, and public nuisance. The Justice Department, while disputing the court's legal analysis, acknowledged in hindsight that the Obama administration could have done more to reduce the protests' impact and recognized that its decision not to forcibly remove protesters from federal land had 'painful consequences' for North Dakota. The state had originally sued in 2019 seeking $38 million; the final figure accounts for a prior $10 million federal grant and a $15 million donation from pipeline company Energy Transfer, the latter deemed a gift by the judge. The policing response spanned seven months, involved 178 agencies, led to 761 arrests, and required a four-day cleanup removing millions of pounds of trash. The pipeline has operated since mid-2017 and carries roughly 4% of U.S. daily oil production. Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Chairman Steve Sitting Bear said the tribe will continue to pursue its treaty rights and water safety concerns.