Cannon Ball, ND — Final construction on the Dakota Access Pipeline could begin as soon as today, now that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers filed a notice of intent on Tuesday to grant Energy Transfer Partners the easement necessary to drill under the Missouri River's Lake Oahe reservoir.

In short, the Army Corps failed to uphold a December announcement it would complete a full environmental impact assessment as the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe had requested, and has instead abruptly sided with the Trump administration for Big Oil over environmental concerns and treaty rights.

Although the USACE announcement merely codifies an executive memorandum issued by President Trump — which called for completion of both the $3.8 billion, 1,172-mile Dakota Access and the Keystone XL Pipelines — just days after he came to office, the significance in the ability for ETP to complete construction of the notorious pipeline cannot be overstated.

Acting Secretary of the Army David Speer told Congress he plans to grant the easement to the pipeline's owner for the next 30 years.

In the notice to federal court, USACE states it will "waive its policy to wait 14 days after Congressional notification before granting" the easement to ETP, which could feasibly begin drilling under Lake Oahe sometime today.