In November of 2020, Governor Gretchen Withmer set a six month deadline to cease operation of the 2 twenty -inch ( in diameter) underwater pipeline (known as Line 5) in the Straits of Mackinac while ordering the company’s easement with the State to be revoked & terminated. That deadline EXPIRED on May 12th 2021 and Enbridge is fighting to keep the pipeline open and so far they have.
The tunnel is an Enbridge Corp. $500 million plus private investment.
They are saying the Great Lakes Tunnel Project is going forward in Michigan. If Enbridge wins in court the tunnel will be built deep under the Straits of Mackinac to house the 70 year old line pipeline. It has leaked 33 times and has discharged more than 1.1 million gallons of oil into our Great Lakes! It is important to remember the Great Lakes account for 21% of the earth’s freshwater!
Scientific experts have reviewed Enbridge’s energy proposal of the Great Lakes Tunnel Project for the Line 5 pipeline in the Straits of Mackinac, and are raising many red flags. Brian O’mara, a geological engineer and a 30 year veteran of tunnel projects, is not convinced that it’s safe. Among the red flags are difficult geologic conditions, poor quality bed rock, fault zones, and high groundwater pressures, including high-risk open water tunnels. Brian O’mara was quoted in saying “What Enbridge has submitted to the State of Michigan doesn’t come close to properly designing and preparing for an underwater tunnel -plain and simple.” O’mara said one of the red flags in the proposal is the company took boring samples from the Straits of Mackinac every 950 feet- when the industry standard is ever 50 feet to 200 feet. Not understanding the underground conditions of the rock and soil could lead to massive problems that could lead to disaster in constructing a tunnel.
Mike Wilczynski, who has more than 40 years of geological experience and environmental experience, including 12 years as a senior geologist for the Department of Environmental Quality. Wilczynski went on to say “Enbridge hasn’t said how it will remove bentonite clay. When the clay is mixed with water it will stick to everything it touches, killing off fisheries and destroying our drinking water! Wilczynski also went on to say “Enbridge wants to discharge 5 million gallons of wastewater into Lake Michigan everyday that the tunnel is being constructed.” “It is very clear that Enbridge has changed the project design to cut their costs dramatically, but also puts tunnel workers, nearby residents at a much greater risk.”
Michigan’s Attorney General Dana Nessel will get another chance to argue that her lawsuit seeking to SHUT DOWN LINE 5 pipeline is best heard in State court. It is known Enbridge’s case would work best in Federal court.
Lastly and sadly, Line 5 in Michigan will likely remain open despite the efforts of Governor Gretchen Whitmer, and Attorney General Dana Nessel. They have failed so far to stop the 70 year pipeline from transporting petroleum across the Straits of Mackinac.
Enbridge Gas, Inc. is North America’s largest natural gas utility by volume and 3rd largest by customer count.
Let us hope that Attorney General Dana Nessel gets her day in state court, and Line 5 gets permanently shut down before disaster strikes.
Lori Pica
(Updates will come as we hear of any)