DETROIT – Two environmental groups are filing appeals to a recent state decision which gave the OK to plans to build a pipeline tunnel under the Straits of Mackinac.
On December 23, the groups Michigan Climate Action Network (Lansing) and Environmental Law & Policy Center (Chicago) filed plans to appeal a November decision by the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC). The groups object to approval the MPSC gave the Canadian energy company Enbridge, Inc. to build a 4 1/2 mile tunnel under the Mackinac Straits. The tunnel Enbridge plans to build will enclose its Line 5 oil and liquified gas pipeline deep under the Straits.
Recommended Videos
Line 5 is a 645-mile oil pipeline that carries crude oil and natural gas liquids from central Canada to eastern Canada, cutting through Wisconsin and Michigan on its way east. The portion of Line 5 that runs under the Great Lakes is of extreme concern to environmental groups, who say Enbridge’s tunnel project - and the entire 70-year-old pipeline - violate Michigan’s Environmental Protection Act of 1994. The groups say the threat of a Line 5 rupture and spill in the Great Lakes would be catastrophic for the region, environmentally and economically.
Related: Does Line 5 put Michigan’s Great Lakes at risk for a ‘catastrophic’ oil spill?
“Line 5 threatens 20 percent of the planet’s fresh water. Industry reports show that we can and must create a planned and orderly transition to decommission Line 5,” said Liz Kirkwood, Executive Director of the group FLOW (For Love of Water, Traverse City). FLOW is part of the appeal filing. Kirkwood added, “it makes no sense in this climate emergency to be transporting and emitting these dirty fossil fuels.”
Enbridge said its tunnel will protect the Great Lakes.
“We are ready to begin work on this project,” said Enbridge spokesperson Ryan Duffy. “The only thing standing in the way of locating a replacement section of Line 5 into the tunnel is a decision on our permit application by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.”
The Enbridge tunnel project still needs federal approval by the US Army Corps of Engineers. A final Environmental Impact Statement by the Army Corps most likely won’t be released until 2026.
Background: Michigan approves Line 5 replacement, concrete tunnel under Straits of Mackinac