Authorities on Monday defended their decision to douse protesters with water during a skirmish in subfreezing weather near the Dakota Access oil pipeline.

Tension flared anew at the Dakota Access pipeline as protesters tried to push past a long-blockaded bridge on a state highway, only to be turned back by a line of law enforcement using water cannon and what appeared to be tear gas.

The head of the company building the Dakota Access oil pipeline said Friday that it won’t be rerouted but that he’d like to meet with the head of an American Indian tribe to try to ease the tribe’s concerns about the project. 

Officers in riot gear clashed again Wednesday with protesters near the Dakota Access pipeline, hitting dozens with pepper spray.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers won’t yet authorize construction of the $3.8 billion, four-state Dakota Access oil pipeline on federal land in southern North Dakota.

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s attempt to halt construction of the four-state Dakota Access oil pipeline near their North Dakota reservation, a cause that has drawn thousands to join a protest, was denied Friday by a federal judge.