They likely did object to this former pipeline, they just never received media coverage. Now, thanks to the internet being able to mobilize supporters nationwide, they have enough leverage to fight against a new pipeline. The former pipeline is also likely not transporting nearly as much crude oil as the DAPL will (DAPL will transport a half a billion gallons of crude oil daily). Just because there is a pipeline already there does not give them the right to build another one. Transporting oil by rail and road may have a worse track record, but oil spills are certainly not safe. A quick google search of oil pipeline spills will discover at least 25 spills this year alone, and that's only the ones documented on wikipedia. Oil pipelines do in fact run through cities all the time, but when they leak, actions can be taken to mitigate them. If oil were to leak into Lake Oahe, it could take days or weeks before they find out. And cleaning oil out of the sole water source for a community is a lot more difficult and expensive than cleaning oil out of soil. Investing in this large-scale pipeline will set us back, not take us forward, when it comes to our climate goals. This pipeline will increase our oil consumption and carbon emissions, when we should instead be investing our efforts into renewables. Pres. Obama vetoed the Keystone XL pipeline because he knew what it would do to our climate goals, and he should have done the same for DAPL.