North Dakota is the site of the United States’ biggest oil rush. The underground Bakken shale oil formation, which may have more extractable petroleum than all other known oil fields in the United States combined, is the size of West Virginia, covering one-third of North Dakota.
The North Dakota oil rush began in 2007 when the environmentally destructive method of drilling known as “fracking” was pioneered.
Tens of thousands of predominantly out-of-state workers have since flooded western North Dakota, leading to a major housing shortage. Oil companies are resorting to buying up large swaths of land and evicting original tenants.
On April 16, four Native American residents of Prairie Winds Mobile Home Park were forced out of their homes by the landlord because the park had recently been sold to an oil tanker company. Residents were not given any restitution.
Oil companies seek to extract and appropriate as much resource wealth as possible while defraying the environmental and social costs onto the people.
