Judge rejects tribes’ request to stop Dakota Access construction

A judge has rejected a request by two American Indian tribes to halt construction of a section of the Dakota Access oil pipeline until a lawsuit over the project is resolved. The Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Sioux requested the temporary restraining order last week after Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners got federal permission to lay pipe under a Missouri River reservoir in North Dakota. The tribes say the pipeline would endanger their cultural sites and water supply. They added a religious freedom component to their case last week, arguing that clean water is necessary to practice the Sioux religion. The company called the religion argument a last-minute delay tactic.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.