The Deputy Secretary of the Army has granted the final permit needed to complete the North Dakota Pipeline (NDPL), according to a court filing on Feb. 7.

President Donald Trump instructed the Army Corps of Engineers to conduct a quickened review of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, proving that Trump’s administration has a desire to support the fossil fuel industry. The decision was opposed by congressional Republicans and criticised by members of the tribe, and was a major strike to activists who came last year and gathered on the Standing Rock’s land to defy the federal government.

The government has an ongoing environmental review of the pipeline and will enforce a plan to prepare a statement on its 1,170-mile route. One area of interest that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has found is the Oceti Sakowin Camp, 50 acres of Corps land, in Cannon Ball, North Dakota due to “high potential for flooding,” according to a statement from Feb. 3.

The Oceti Sakowin Camp will be closed Feb. 22 due to the low-lying area between the Missouri and Cannonball Rivers, putting it at a risk of flooding after a winter of record snowfall in the area. The Corps also took notice of oil erosion and pollution, which could result in contaminated runoff into both rivers.

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Council asked NPDL protest camp organizers to share their plans for camp cleanup and other issues in an effort to address unsubstantiated rumors.

“Because of this risk of flood, we’re worried about what’s going to be left at the camp,” said Tribal Chairman Dave Archambault II. “What we want to do is make sure none of that waste gets into the Missouri River.”

Other protestors are disagreeable with the current situation, however, as protesters Chase Iron Eyes and Vanessa Castle led a group of several dozen protesters to set up a new camp on higher ground, getting 74 arrested.

They were charged with criminal trespassing and engaging in a riot, which was refuted by protesters who say they were peacefully assembling on land they believe belongs to Native Americans. In Iron Eyes’ point of view, “it’s clear to America that Donald Trump is inciting a riot.”

Archambault was critical of Iron Eyes, who had previously called people to stay with their lives. “This group’s actions do not represent the tribe nor the original intent of the water protector,” Archambault said the next day, “If we are to fight for treaty rights, then we must all work together…This type of action was not undertaken in that spirit, because instead of empowering us, it undermines us…”.

“Yesterday, some took advantage of the impending easement and used it as a call back to camp… The fight is no longer here, but in the halls and courts of the federal government. Here at the camp, those who remain should be working together to help clean and restore the land.”