Today the Illinois Commerce Commission granted approval to Dakota Access to construct the proposed pipeline across Illinois.
The MAIN Coalition’s Chairman, Ed Wiederstein, issued the following statement upon approval:
The MAIN Coalition applauds the decision by the Illinois Commerce Commission to issue a permit for the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline. Over the past year, the ICC has conducted a comprehensive and objective review of the application and has concluded that the pipeline is essential to the supply of affordable, domestic energy. Illinois leads the Midwest in crude oil refining capacity and it will undoubtedly continue to play a central role in powering the American economy for generations to come.
LIUNA stated the following after hearing the ICC’s announcement:
The Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA) applauds the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) forward thinking to support the creation of thousands of family supporting jobs for Illinois’ construction workers.The decision to approve the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) will not only put Laborers to work, but will help to expand the economies of cities and towns across the entire state.
“The ICC’s approval is an acknowledgement to the quality and safety that LIUNA members are known for,” said LIUNA Vice President and Midwest Regional Manager John F. Penn. “Our members go through a state of the art training program to do this work safely.”
LIUNA has 4 accredited training facilities in Illinois where hands-on training includes up to 164 hours of pipeline specific instruction.
Bill Fleshli, Executive Director of the Illinois Petroleum Marketers Association stated the following:
Growing safe and reliable access to America’s energy resources is the purpose of a pipeline project like Dakota Access. The Illinois Petroleum Marketers Association is encouraged that the Illinois Commerce Commission took the appropriate steps to review and approve this important infrastructure project. Projects like Dakota Access are necessary and vital to bringing affordable energy supplies both to Illinois and throughout the Midwest.