BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A spokesman for North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple says the governor has no intention of blocking food and supplies from coming into a camp where people have gathered to protest the Dakota Access pipeline.
Dalrymple on Monday issued a “mandatory evacuation” for the camp “to safeguard against harsh winter conditions.”
Dalrymple spokesman Jeff Zent says the evacuation order has been “misconstrued” by some as giving authorities the ability to block food and supplies from coming in or out of the encampment. Zent says that is “not the governor’s intent.”
The 1,172-mile pipeline is nearly complete except for a small section beneath a Missouri River reservoir near the encampment, which is about 50 miles south of Bismarck.