Coalition Voices Support for Pipeline as PSC Review Continues

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Members Stress Importance of Improved Pipeline Infrastructure to North Dakota’s Economic Outlook

KILLDEER – Members of the Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now (MAIN), a coalition of stakeholders from the business, labor, and agricultural communities, reiterated their support for the Dakota Access Pipeline following today’s Public Service Commission hearing in Killdeer. In addition to offering comments to the PSC in person on Monday, members issued the following statements in support of the PSC’s careful consideration and approval of the Dakota Access Pipeline.

“Monday’s meeting in Killdeer represents an important step forward in the permitting process for this vital project,” said Andy Peterson, President of the Greater North Dakota Chamber of Commerce. “Beyond injecting more than a billion dollars in new investment into our state, Dakota Access will also provide North Dakota’s energy industry with the improved and expanded infrastructure that it so desperately needs to continue to power our economy. We enthusiastically support this project and encourage the PSC to approve its application, and we’re glad to hear members of the public voicing their support as well.”

“The Dakota Access Pipeline will create thousands of new jobs – jobs that will help North Dakotans to support their families and invest in their communities,” added Pam Link of the Laborers District of North Dakota and Minnesota. “What’s more, this project will ensure that the energy resources that have made our economy one of the strongest in the nation are able to move as safely, efficiently, and affordably as possible. We support this project because we know it will be built and operated right – and we look forward to getting to work.”

“The energy boom has left roads and rails in the Northern Plains overburdened, and that’s led to traffic congestion and shipping delays that have a real impact on the day-to-day life of North Dakotans,” said Ed Wiederstein, chairman of the Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now. “By taking around a half million barrels of crude oil off of the rails each day, Dakota Access will relieve that pressure and, in doing so, help to make energy production in the Bakken more efficient. This project will do more than create jobs – it will fundamentally improve Northern Plains transportation infrastructure – and that’s good for everyone.”

The Public Service Commission’s final hearing to discuss the Dakota Access Pipeline will be held in Williston on June 26.

About MAIN: The Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now (MAIN) is a partnership of entities from agriculture, business, and labor sectors aimed at supporting the economic development and energy security benefits associated with infrastructure projects in the Midwest. Visit us online at www.MWAllianceNow.org, or follow us on Facebook and Twitter.