Enbridge says it has an agreement for the tunnel

Heather Wright/The Independent

Another blow to Enbridge in its bid to replace Line 5 which runs through the Straits of Mackinac.

Enbridge has been trying to find a way to improve the international pipeline which brings hydrocarbons to Sarnia through Michigan for a decade. The company won a major victory when the Michigan Public Service gave approval to a plan to replace two lines in the waters of the Straits of Mackinac with one pipeline encased in concrete in July. But in August, the Michigan Supreme court invalidated the permit.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) Director Phil Roos say the July 13 permit which approved construction of the tunnel project is under review after the Michigan Supreme Court decision.

“We understand that EGLE’s permit may need further review through the legal process,” said Roos, in a news release. “Until all those legal questions are resolved, conditions in EGLE’s permit prevent construction of the tunnel entrance from moving forward.” 

“The Michigan Supreme Court has made clear that the state must more thoroughly scrutinize the environmental consequences of the proposed tunnel and the alternatives to it,” said Whitmer in the joint news release. 

“At the same time, Enbridge needs to stop asking Michigan to wait for a tunnel that could be a decade or longer away and start pursuing alternatives now that can get oil out of the Straits within months. Michigan has waited long enough. We cannot put the Great Lakes at risk for another decade while waiting for a solution that may never come.” 

Whitmer also wrote to Enbridge’s president, Gregory Ebel, calling on the company to shutdown Line 5 and use an alternative to the underwater pipeline.

“Every day, oil continues to move through two exposed pipelines on the bottom of the Great Lakes, just one accident away from disaster…One spill in the Straits could do irreparable damage to our water, our economy, and our way of life,” Whitmer said, in the letter to Ebel.

Whitmer urged Ebel to find a way to move gas another way.

“Multiple energy supply-chain experts have concluded that, with sufficient notice and an orderly transition, the market can adapt to a Line 5 shutdown without significant supply shortages or price spikes. An alternative solution can be months away. But Enbridge must act,” she wrote.

“I am calling on Enbridge to pursue an alternative to both the existing dual pipelines and the tunnel, and to begin that work now. Develop a planned, orderly transition that protects Michigan families and businesses and gets oil out of the Straits far sooner.”

The move was praised by environmentalist. “Line 5 is a 73-year-old pipeline in the heart of the Great Lakes. A spill would threaten more than 700 miles of shoreline and the drinking water for millions of Michiganders,” said the Michigan League of Conservation Voters in a social media post.

“All efforts should now go toward removing Line 5 completely and pursuing the alternatives already available to meet our energy needs.”

In a statement, Enbridge said “We already have an agreement with the State of Michigan to advance the Great Lakes Tunnel Project. Without years of litigation and political intervention, this project would be moving toward completion.

“The Michigan Department of Environment Great Lakes and Energy has reissued key environmental permits for the project. Also, after a six-year review, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers approved the project to move forward. The Corps’ Environmental Impact Statement represents the highest standard of environmental review required for major critical energy and infrastructure projects,” the statement said.

Enbridge says its ready to work with Governor Whitmer to “protect Michigan’s natural resources while ensuring the continued safe operation of critical energy infrastructure.”

As Michigan officials were announcing the review, Enbridge was in the middle of clean up of a spill in Wisconsin which shut Line 5 down Sept. 9. It’s working on a bypass around the break and hopes to reopen the Line 5 Sept. 12.