Last Updated on May 5, 2026
On April 30, 2026, Oceti Sakowin land defenders engaged in direct action to halt exploratory graphite drilling near Pe’ Sla, a sacred site of significant importance to Indigenous tribes in the Black Hills region of South Dakota.
According to an NDN Collective press release, roughly 12 land defenders, organized by the indigenous-led NDN Collective, entered the site early in the morning and occupied two active drill pads. Several members locked themselves to drilling equipment, while others held traditional ceremonies, with the aim of forcing a cessation of all drilling operations until May 4, when a federal court was to hear an emergency court order to halt ongoing environmental and cultural destruction.
The action targeted the Rochford Mineral Exploratory Drilling Project, operated by Rapid City-based Pete Lien & Sons, which is searching for graphite despite a 2016 federal trust designation meant to protect Pe’ Sla and a memorandum of understanding with the U.S. Forest Service establishing a 2-mile protective buffer zone around the site. At least ten drill pads had been operating within that agreed-upon buffer zone until activists shut them down.
Pe’ Sla, a high-elevation prairie also known as Reynolds Prairie, is revered as a site of creation to the Lakota, Dakota, and Nakota tribes. “Pe’ Sla is our sacred land, and we are doing everything we can to protect it,” stated Dr. Valeriah Big Eagle, Director of He Sapa Initiatives at NDN Collective.
The direct action on the ground coincided with legal challenges against the U.S. Forest Service, which the plaintiffs say unlawfully bypassed a comprehensive environmental review by utilizing an abbreviated regulatory pathway known as a “categorical exclusion” to approve the project.
In early April, NDN Collective, the Black Hills Clean Water Alliance, and Earthworks filed a lawsuit, later seeking an emergency temporary restraining order to stop the project before irreversible damage occurred. Furthermore, nine Native American tribes—representing the Seven Council Fires of the Great Sioux Nation—filed a separate joint lawsuit against the Forest Service to stop the project.
Following the direct action, the federal court hearing on May 4, 2026, yielded a victory for the land defenders. The court granted the plaintiffs a temporary restraining order, banning all drilling at Pe’ Sla for 14 days. The court also tentatively scheduled a preliminary injunction hearing for May 20-21, 2026, where the full merits of the case will be argued.
Leaders of the movement celebrated the legal intervention as a direct result of the community’s steadfast resistance in a press release and said that the restraining order allowed them to prepare for the preliminary injunction hearing, where they will argue the merits of the full case later this month.
“This is a huge win for the people, for tribal nations and for all those who believe in clean water and protecting Mother Earth,” declared Wizipan Garriott, president of NDN Collective. “We’ve successfully stopped drilling and the ongoing harm for at least the next two weeks. This is the first big step in this fight to protect Pe’ Sla and clean drinking water for all.”
Dr. Valeriah Big Eagle expressed profound gratitude to the elders, spiritual leaders, and the community who supported the camp both in person and online. “As a mother and an auntie, this is a big win for future generations, the land, and the water,” she stated, adding, “This win would not have been possible without you, Wóphila tȟáŋka ečhíčiyapi ye.”
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