Pawnee Nation sues government over earthquakes

The Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma filed a lawsuit Monday against the federal government, saying it has not done enough to regulate oil drilling on tribal lands, including preventing earthquakes that have rocked the region.

“Unfortunately the risks have become too great, the needs too urgent and the time too short for us to act,” said Andrew Knife Chief, executive director of the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma.

A magnitude-5.8 earthquake, the largest recorded earthquake in Oklahoma, struck within a few miles of Pawnee land in September. That earthquake and others have damaged a number of buildings on Pawnee land.

The Pawnee have said they have not been given notice about drilling on their land and that the government hasn’t followed the moratorium on drilling that they called for in October 2015.

This story was originally published November 21, 2016 at 6:23 PM with the headline "Pawnee Nation sues government over earthquakes."