Pipestone Quarry threatened

PIPESTONE, Minn. – A rock quarry where Indigenous people from across the continent harvest red stone to make ceremonial pipe bowls is threatened by continued petroleum pipeline development.

The existing Magellan pipeline supplied gas to consumers in Minnesota before the permit expired in 2022. The pipeline is owned by ONEOK, a company based in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

A new permit was issued to the Magellan company recently. The permit includes a new re-route which bypasses the sacred site. However, Indigenous activists believe the route is still too close to the quarry of catlinite. The permit requires cultural surveys to be completed before the new route is constructed.

The Red Stone Movement, a collaboration of grassroots organizations and tribal governments, issued a statement recently calling for action to defend the sacred pipestone site. Indigenous people were asked to submit comments opposing the continued development of the Magellan Pipeline route.

The statement also outlines the danger to the site due to the Magellan pipeline, which is owned by ONEOK, a company which manages 50,000 miles of various energy pipelines. “Your water and your land is [sic] under attack due to ongoing extraction and pollution damage” caused by the pipeline. Supporters were asked to submit a letter of opposition to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission by November 11.

The Pipestone National Monument is an area sacred to countless Indigenous people. It is the only place on Earth where catlinite, which is a brownish-red soft stone, can be found. Indigenous people make regular pilgrimage to harvest the red stone. A permit is required to mine the red stone. Permits are issued by the day, week, month or annual basis and are limited to enrolled citizens of federally recognized tribes. There is no charge to apply, but permit holders must supply their own tools.

Officials of the Pipestone National Monument must consult with 23 tribal nations when considering development on or adjacent to the sacred site. Those tribes are Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, Crow Creek Sioux Tribe, Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe, Fort Peck Assiniboine & Sioux Tribes, Iowa Tribe of Kansas & Nebraska, Iowa Tribe of Oklahoma, Lower Brule Sioux Tribe, Lower Sioux Indian Community in the State of Minnesota, Mandan Hidatsa Arikara Nation, Oglala Lakota Nation and the Omaha Tribe of Nebraska.

Also, the Otoe-Missouria Tribe, Ponca Tribe of Nebraska, Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma, Prairie Island Indian Community, Rosebud Sioux Tribe, Santee Sioux Tribe, Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community, Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate of the Lake Traverse Reservation, Spirit Lake Dakota Tribe, Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, Upper Sioux Indian Community and the Yankton Sioux Tribe.

A meeting is scheduled for Monday, November 25, 2024 at a time and location to be determined in Fort Thompson, South Dakota on the Crow Creek Sioux reservation. Follow the Brave Heart Society Facebook page for final details regarding the meeting.