Greenpeace has vowed to fight a US$345 million verdict over its role in protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline, a 1,172-mile (1,886-kilometer) underground pipeline transporting crude oil from North Dakota to Illinois.
A North Dakota District Court judge on Friday validated a US$345 million jury award against the environmental group that was reached last year. The case was brought by the pipeline company, Texas-based Energy Transfer, which accused Greenpeace of hindering construction of the pipeline by galvanizing protests at the site a decade ago. Greenpeace has always denied the accusations, saying that it only played a supporting role in the non-violent protests led by Native American groups.
In October, Judge James Gion, who oversaw the trial, nearly halved the amount initially awarded by the jury months earlier to roughly US$345 million from US$667 million. Last week, he finalized that judgment despite Greenpeace’s request to overturn or at least further reduce the verdict, saying that the jury “must have found the evidence presented by the plaintiffs to be more credible.”
Greenpeace has warned the sum could bankrupt it. The campaign group works as an independent network funded by individual contributions and funding grants. It does not accept money from governments, corporations or political parties, according to its website. In 2023, Greenpeace USA had just a little over US$40 million in revenue and support, and about US$38 million in expenses, its financial statement shows.
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