Bismarck, North Dakota: Reopening a bridge near the main Dakota Access pipeline protest encampment is key to restoring better relations between the state and the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, according to North Dakota’s now-former governor and the tribal chairman, but the effort will take weeks if not months.
The bridge, unofficially called Backwater Bridge, has been closed since late October, when protesters of $3.8bn pipeline blocked the bridge with burning vehicles, damaging the structure. It’s also site of several clashes, including on November 20, when authorities used tear gas, rubber bullets and water sprays on protesters.
The state Transportation Department has said they can’t inspect the bridge until they know their workers will be safe, though pipeline opponents believe the closure is meant to block the north end of the federal land, where hundreds of protesters are camped out.
Governor Jack Dalrymple met with Tribal Chairman Dave Archambault, agreeing to enlist Bureau of Indian Affairs to help ensure the safety of inspectors so that the bridge can reopen.
Dalrymple said reopening the bridge “will be a strong signal of cooperation to return area living conditions to a more normal state,” while Archambault said doing so removes a roadblock to emergency services and commerce. The bridge, on state Highway 1806, is the main route to get to the tribe’s casino. “If there’s a way that we can help so that this bridge is opened, it’s a step forward,” Archambault said.
A timeline hasn’t been finalised, but Transportation Department spokeswoman Jamie Olson indicates it will be a slow process, with testing of bridge being done “in next few weeks.”
Core sampling to evaluate the concrete requires temperatures around freezing mark for machines to work properly, she said, and the state has been blanketed by frigid arctic air for weeks.
