A North Dakota court has upheld a massive financial penalty against environmental organization Greenpeace, ordering the group to pay $345 million in damages related to protests over the Dakota Access Pipeline construction.
Judge James Gion made the ruling official on Friday, maintaining his earlier decision from October that had already reduced the original jury award by nearly half. The March jury verdict had initially set damages at approximately $667 million.
The environmental organization plans to challenge the decision, with representatives calling the legal action “a blatant attempt to silence free speech.”
“Speaking out against corporations that cause environmental harm should never be deemed unlawful,” stated Marco Simons, who serves as interim general counsel for both Greenpeace USA and the Greenpeace Fund.
Pipeline operator Energy Transfer defended the court’s decision, describing it as “an important step in this legal process of holding Greenpeace accountable for its unlawful and damaging actions against us during the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline.”
The company indicated it is “analyzing possible next steps that we may choose to take to make sure they are held fully accountable.”
The controversial Dakota Access Pipeline project was constructed between 2016 and 2017 near the Standing Rock Indian Reservation. The completed pipeline now carries approximately 40% of crude oil from North Dakota’s Bakken shale formation.
Environmental activists and tribal groups mounted significant opposition to the project, arguing it would contaminate local water sources and worsen climate change impacts.
Energy Transfer, headquartered in Texas, initiated legal proceedings against Greenpeace in federal court in 2017, claiming the organization disseminated false information about the pipeline and financially supported protesters who interfered with construction activities.
The jury’s March decision included financial penalties for defamation, property trespassing, and conspiracy charges.
In a separate legal maneuver, Greenpeace filed a countersuit against Energy Transfer in the Netherlands this past February, utilizing European legislation designed to prevent harassment lawsuits targeting activists. That case remains active in the court system.
