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Biden Administration Won't Shut Down Existing Line 5 Pipeline as Canada, Tribes Write Letters | Columbus Ohio Dump Trucks

Energy

Battle over Enbridge replacement tunnel heats up over environmental impact statement implications

Line 5 Subsmersible View
A view of the Line 5 pipeline hundreds of ft below the surface of Lake Huron.
Photo courtesy of the Associated Press

The Biden administration indicated it might increase the scope of an environmental review of a replacement tunnel for part of the Enbridge, Inc. Line 5 oil and gas pipeline in the Straits of Mackinac before quickly walking back those comments a day later.

Line 5 is a 68-year-old underwater pipeline that carries crude oil and natural gas liquids through the Straits of Mackinac between Michigan and Canada.

White House Deputy Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on Nov. 8 that said the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is preparing "an environmental impact statement on line 5 and the construction of that replacement line," and then added that the EIS "will help inform any additional action or position the U.S. will be taking on the replacement of line 5."

A day later, Jean-Pierre told reporters that the White House is not contemplating shutting down the existing Line 5 and the EIS the USACE is preparing will deal only with construction of the proposed replacement tunnel passed in the final days of former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder’s administration. All of the questions were in regard to Canada invoking in October a 1977 treaty provision with the U.S. to trigger bilateral negotiations over Line 5's continued operation.

Jean-Pierre said the Biden administration looks to "engage constructively" in discussions about line 5 with the Canadian government and, "in addition to being one of the closest allies, Canada remains a key U.S. partner in energy trade, as well as efforts to address climate change and protect the environment."

For its part, the USACE insists that the environmental impact statement is being created for the Line 5 tunnel.

“The environmental impact statement being researched and written by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is for the Line 5 tunnel, that is what it’s looking at,” said William Dowell, chief of public affairs with the USACE Detroit district. “That’s what it’s looking at, but that does not mean it may not find anything else.”

Canada Invokes Treaty, So do Tribes

The ongoing Line 5 dispute between Enbridge and Canada and environmental groups heated up again with Canada’s letter asking for the negotiations and Michigan’s 12 federally recognized Tribal Nations then wrote another letter Nov. 4 to the Biden administration in support of efforts to shut down Line 5. Over four years and two Michigan governors, the fight over replacing or removing line 5 from the Straits has taken as many turns as the pipeline, itself.

The letter from the tribes of the Three Fires Confederacy of Ojibwe, Odawa and Potawatomi, asserted that shutting down the pipeline and opposing the approved replacement tunnel to get the pipeline out of the water are essential to preserving their rights under the 1836 Treaty of Washington that reserved their fishing, hunting and gathering rights in the straits. The portion of the Line 5 pipeline in dispute goes through both U.S. and Canadian waters in Lake Huron. The replacement tunnel would be built more than 100 ft below the water of the lake in bedrock.

“These were among the most precious of the rights our ancestors insisted upon when forced to make massive land cessions to the United States. The ability to take fish, game, and plants was and remains central to our people’s way of life and very survival,” the letter states.

Whitney Gravelle, president of the executive council of the Bay Mills Indian Community said the rights outlined in the treaty remain important.

“Many view those treaties as things of the past, as an historic document to be learned about (when studying) the creation and formation of the United States,” she said. “But those documents are living promises. Our ancestors understood when they signed that treaty that they were making a sacred promise for the future of their people.”  

The tribes are joining Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) who cited safety, environmental concerns and the treaty rights of indigenous peoples as some of the reasons behind her attempt in November 2020 to revoke a permit that allows Calgary-based Enbridge, a multinational energy company, to operate the pipeline.

She ordered Enbridge to shut the pipeline down by May 12, but the energy Charlotte NC dump trucks company has so far successfully fought the shutdown and the Whitmer administration’s attempt to cancel the $500-million replacement tunnel in court. The tunnel was approved during Snyder’s time as governor. The Michigan Court of Claims ruled in 2019 that design columbus oh dump truck work and pre-construction efforts for the tunnel may proceed.

See You in Court

Whitmer and Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel (D) and Enbridge are engaged in several ongoing court battles.

Lynsey Mukomel, press secretary for the Attorney General Nessel said “we welcome the Tribal Nations support of our efforts to shut down Line 5 and their request for the Biden Administration to do the same.” 

U.S. District Judge Janet Neff is weighing whether myriad pipeline cases should be heard in state or federal court.

Enbridge spokesperson Ryan Duffy said the Charlotte NC dump trucks company wants the cases to be heard in federal court. Gravelle said the Tribal Nations want the cases to be heard in state court.

The letter from the Tribal Nations makes several requests of the Biden Administration, including asking that Tribal Nations have a seat at the negotiating table to participate, in particular, in any negotiations with Canada regarding line 5.

Energy Impact

Canada maintains the pipeline is safe. It also transports 540,000 barrels of oil a day and its shutdown would have a market impact on gasoline and heating oil prices in the midwest.

“Line 5 has operated safely for 65 years and is helping to provide essential energy to heat homes and power the economy for Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania, and Ontario and Quebec,” said Diana Tan, spokesperson for the Embassy of Canada. 

Duffy agreed.

“There are millions of people and thousands of businesses on both sides of the border who are dependent on line 5 to provide the fuel they need for heating, manufacturing, airplanes, roads and automobiles,” he said. “Line 5 is vital energy infrastructure on a daily basis to Michigan, other states in the region, and Canada’s two largest provinces.

Duffy said his Charlotte NC dump trucks company respects the treaty rights of the Tribal Nations.  

“We are open to meeting and talking with tribal members anywhere and anytime,” Duffy said. “Engagement with and respect for First Nations, Tribes and indigenous peoples where we do business is very important to us.” 

While the future of Line 5 is debated, the USACE continues to weigh the impact a tunnel built by Enbridge would have in the straits.

Duffy said Enbridge spends millions of dollar a year to ensure the pipeline’s safety. He said construction of a new tunnel is critical to that effort.

“Three years ago both houses of the Michigan legislature voted overwhelming to establish the Mackinac Straits Corridor Authority to oversee our construction of a Great Lakes Tunnel in which line 5 would be contained well below the waters at the straits. This makes a safe pipeline safer and virtually eliminates the chance of an anchor strike or spill,” he said.