North Dakota Pipeline Protests: What You Need To Know

Protesters in North Dakota on Thursday night fired weapons at police, threw Molotov cocktails and set debris on fire as they clashed with authorities over a controversial oil pipeline that they say would run precariously close to sacred burial grounds and possibly contaminate the local water supply.

At least 141 people were arrested during the confrontation, according to the Morton County Sheriff's Office, after protesters attempted to block a major highway in the area. At least two of those arrested were people who fired weapons, including one toward police.

Here is what you need to know.

What is the North Dakota Pipeline?

The Dakota Access Pipeline, to use its formal name, is a planned underground oil pipeline by Energy Transfer Partners that would run from North Dakota down through South Dakota and Iowa and end in Patoka, Illinois.

It has been compared to the Keystone XL Pipeline project that was vetoed by President Obama because of its nearly identical route.

The project was given federal approval in August of this year following an environmental study from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Why is it being protested?

A big concern for some locals on the pipeline's planned route is environmental. The pipes, they say, are likely to break at some point, and it's unclear what resources Energy Transfer Partners has to respond immediately and adequately to such a disaster.

The pipeline could also affect tiling, soil erosion and soil quality for farmers.

Several Native American tribes have also said the pipeline would come too close to their reservations and possibly disrupt graves and burial artifacts. They also say the pipeline's close proximity to their lands could pollute their water supply.

Have there been any confrontation before Thursday?

Yes. In September, Dakota Access — a company under Energy Transfer Partners charged with building the pipeline — hired private security to bulldoze federal land just outside of the Standing Rock Indian Reservation.

Protesters there were met with pepper spray and guard dogs, who bit at least six people during the confrontation. After an appeals court denied the tribe's request to stop construction, protesters set up camp along a major highway where construction was to continue.

What happened Thursday?

Police — in armored Humvees, trucks and buses; armed to the teeth with riot gear and military-grade weapons; and watched over by two helicopters and an airplane — moved in on the line of protesters.

Protesters set fires near the highway, threw Molotov cocktails at incoming authorities and even fired a few shots, though no bullets struck police.

At day's end, at least 141 protesters had been arrested.

What's next?

It doesn't appear that protesters are ready to give up the fight.

"We continue to pray for peace," Dave Archambault II, chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, said in a statement after Thursday's unrest.

"We won't step down from this fight," his statement continued. "As peoples of this earth, we all need water. This is about our water, our rights, and our dignity as human beings."

An update Friday afternoon from the Morton County Sheriff's Office said authorities will remain on the bridge north of the protesters but have "no intention on moving further south."

This story will continue to be updated. Refresh this page for more information as it becomes available.

Image via Morton County Sheriff's Office