A jury in North Dakota found Greenpeace liable for $650 million in damages for its role in the protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline. In 2019, Energy Transfer Partners sued the environmental rights organization for orchestrating a large protest against the pipeline’s construction, which cost the company hundreds of millions of dollars in property damage and lost revenue.
As the energy company tried to build the massive pipeline, it was met with fierce resistance from the Standing Rock Sioux and other groups, who claimed the pipeline would damage sacred tribal grounds and could endanger the Missouri River, which is their primary source of water.
In 2016 and 2017, thousands of people gathered near the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation to protest against the construction. The protesters set up camps and worked to halt the construction. While mostly peaceful, the protesters did commit several acts of vandalism, causing damage to the pipeline. In September 2016, the protesters were involved in a clash with security forces when they tried to stop construction on a sacred site. In late October, armed police used military gear to clear out an encampment blocking the construction site.
Greenpeace Senior Legal Adviser Deepa Padmanabha was asked if the non-profit would appeal the verdict she stated, “We know that this fight is not over.”
“That’s the really important message today, and we’re just walking out and we’re going to get together and figure out what our next steps are,” Padmanabha added.
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