Dear Sir or Madam President,

The Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) is a 1,172-mile, 30-inch diameter pipeline that will connect the rapidly expanding Bakken and Three Forks production areas in North Dakota to Patoka, Illinois. The pipeline will carry at least 470,000 barrels of oil a day, or a high of 570,000 barrels a day. With the exponential amount of oil being moved increases the demand for labor. Where an estimated 8,000 to 12,000 jobs have been created by the DAPL.

Great news like this brings joy to my father and his fellow workers. My father has been in the oil business for a little over 5 years now. He has exceeded exponentially at the business he currently is employed at.

However, with the oil business in North Dakota slowing and the prices dropping his job is diminishing. The building of this pipeline will not only help my father, but to many other hardworking citizens of North and South Dakota, Iowa, and Illinois.

While some may add that this pipeline could taint the public’s drinking water. The pipeline is permitted to run parallel to roads, powerlines, and existing pipelines. If the pipeline is needed to travel under any body of water, it has to meet a minimum of a 36 in. clearance of the river bed. Also within the construction is inspections. According to the Dakota Access Pipeline website, the welds that take place within, and on the outside of the pipeline are thoroughly inspected with an x-ray machine to insure the safety of the welds.

All being said Sir/Ma’am, the Dakota Access Pipeline has shown crucial for not only my home state, but also for our great country. Without the pipeline the economy may ripple and come crumbling down right in front of you. I ask of you to take into account of these facts placed before you and consider the options at hand.

Layne Rouse

Minot High School