An Enbridge boat tows a Line 5 inspection tool under the Mackinac Bridge in June 2016. Gov. Despite Enbridge's assurances that the odds of damage to the pipeline are slim, Line 5 has, in fact, been damaged at least twice in the last two years. That's just not in its nature. It's part of the federal Department of Transportation. Click (or touch) any point along the red path to generate zone markers of the current and hypothetical impact of pipeline expansion. Families and businesses in the Upper Peninsula rely on Line 5 to meet 65% of their propane demand. Enbridge remains committed to continued dialogue with Bad River leadership; however, the company has an obligation to provide uninterrupted service to its customers and is therefore moving forward with a reroute of Line 5. The new route would loop south of the Bad River Band Reservation and instead, pass through the city of Mellen. Enbridge is rerouting a segment of Line 5 at the request of the Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians. Energizing Michigan since 1953. It's not clear when, or how, the damage occurred. Line 5 carries up to 540,000 barrels of oil and natural gas every day, traveling from Superior to Ontario, Canada. Temperatures will stay mild in the upper teens and low 20s. Whitmer has tried in good faith to negotiate with the oil company, but that's another part of the problem: Enbridge has no incentive to do the same. The Band has filed a lawsuit which seeks to force moving Line 5 … The interactive map below depicts the existing Enbridge oil pipeline route across Wisconsin. An existing pipeline, also named Line 3, was built in 1961 and cuts through Minnesota en route from the Canadian border to Wisconsin. Project Overview and Regulatory Process 1.1 Project Purpose and Need ... Overview of Route Alternatives (from Enbridge Energy, “Line 5 Wisconsin Segment Relocation Project Environmental Impact Report,” March 2020.) Route of Line 5 pipeline. It is a shortcut to benefit the Canadian company, Enbridge, for exporting it's oil while we take enormous risks. 124 W. Allegan St., Suite 1610, Lansing, MI 48933, Tourism and the Oil and Gas Industry in Michigan, Water Usage in Michigan's Oil and Gas Industry. More:Enbridge finds protective coating gaps on Michigan pipeline, More:Democratic legislators ask Trump administration to shut down Line 5 while damage assessed. “Enbridge has considered re-routing Line 5, and as discussed with the Bad River Band, remains open to this option as a solution,” Enbridge said in a statement. Midway across the river, the scorpion stings the frog. In June 2018, the MN Public Utilities Commission voted to approve a new Line 3. After months of research, Tuesday night Enbridge revealed a proposes re-route of Line 5. Gretchen Whitmer revoked the 1953 easement that allows Enbridge Inc. to operate pipelines through the Straits of Mackinac, a narrow waterway that connects Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. “Enbridge has considered re-routing Line 5, and as discussed with the Bad River Band, remains open to this option as a solution,” Enbridge said in a statement. "So far we have submitted an application to U.S. Army Engineers and Wisconsin DNR. Line 5 provides a vital link to propane and other energy supplies used in northern Wisconsin and Michigan. None of this is reassuring. The line runs from Superior, Wisconsin, across Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, through Northern Michigan, down to the thumb region, and over to Sarnia, Ontario. But there’s another place where Line 5 is going under a body of water that’s part of the Great Lakes. The interactive map below depicts the existing Enbridge oil pipeline route across Wisconsin. Alberta Premier Jason Kenney calls an attempt by the Michigan government to shutdown the Enbridge Line 5 pipeline very concerning and a continued effort to … Enbridge Line 5 is a major oil pipeline in the Enbridge Lakehead System, which conveys petroleum from western Canada to eastern Canada via the Great Lakes states. Enbridge Line 5 Tunnel File No. Enbridge would certainly fight it in court. ASHLAND, WI-- Enbridge's Line 5 crude oil pipeline has been operating in Northern Wisconsin for decades. Enbridge's Line 5 pipeline crosses Wisconsin and Michigan and 12 miles of land on the Bad River Indian Reservation. The scorpion replies: "It's my nature.". Enbridge officials like to point to the propane it transports to the Upper Peninsula via Line 5, but critics contend that the majority of its pipeline product is transported from Canada, through the straits, and back to Canada. Minnesota Michigan Wisconsin Proposed Centerline A/ Existing Enbridge Pipeline County Boundary Boundary MPLS 2.5 _ ProjectOverview.mxd REVISED 498 hi elkNBR'DGE Miles | SCALE: This information is for environmental review purposes only. Whitmer's spokesperson says the governor asked the state's Department of Natural Resources to review the 1953 easement. So the route we are proposing would go north of the city of Mellen but south of the park and that parcel is right in between there," Smith said. These 67-year-old Line 5 runs at depths between 100 and 270 feet in the Straits of Mackinac, where it is stressed by strong currents and prone to anchor strikes. Interactive Enbridge Pipeline Map. Both sides in a multi-year battle over the future of Enbridge's Line 5 faced off during an online public hearing before officials with the Army Corps of Engineers. You can zoom and scroll the map to review landmarks that the buried pipeline intersects. The doomed pair start to sink, and the frog asks why. This system of pipelines is the primary transporter of crude oil from western Canada to the United States, with approximately 4,700 miles of pipe and 60 pumping stations serving all the major refineries in the Great Lakes, Midwest, and Ontario. Enbridge in its application to the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC), states the purpose of the project is to alleviate an environmental concern to the Great Lakes raised by the State of Michigan relating to the approximate four miles of Enbridge’s Line 5 consisting of two 20 (inch) diameter pipes that currently crosses the Straits and lies on top of the lakebed. The company didn't comply. Enbridge responded Friday to Gov. A west wind 5-10…, CBS 3 Duluth Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline has safely operated through the Bad River Reservation since 1953. The energy firm is looking to conduct environmental surveys along a 40-mile stretch in Ashland and Iron counties to replace the existing 20-mile segment of Line 5, according to an August letter to property owners from Enbridge. The line carries up to 23 million gallons of oil and natural gas liquids per day from Superior to Sarnia, Ontario. Enbridge says it has bolstered safety along Line 5 since another one of its pipelines, Line 6B, ruptured in the Kalamazoo River in 2010, spilling more than 1.2 million gallons of crude oil in the largest inland oil spill in U.S. history.. And the company plans to add further safeguards to the higher-risk areas. This system of pipelines is the primary transporter of crude oil from western Canada to the United States, with approximately 4,700 miles of pipe and 60 pumping stations serving all the major refineries in the Great Lakes, Midwest, and Ontario. Proposed Relocation of Enbridge Line 5 Pipeline . More:EPA fines Enbridge $6.7 million over failure to fix pipeline safety issues, More:Judge orders temporary shutdown of Line 5, tells Enbridge to explain damage. (Garret Ellison | MLive). After months of research, Tuesday night Enbridge revealed a proposes re-route of Line 5. The system exceeds 5,000 kilometres (3,100 mi) in length including multiple paths. Enbridge Line 5 Line 5 is a 645 mile petroleum pipeline owned and operated by Enbridge Energy, Limited Partnership. Michigan Gov. Participants may join the hearing using both audio and web connections or using audio only. As that pipeline ruptured, Enbridge workers shut down warning alarms again and again, convinced it was an equipment malfunction, not a disaster in process. A letter released by the company, Free Press reporter Keith Matheny wrote, indicates that Enbridge believes the only governmental authority it must answer to is the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, which regulates interstate oil and gas pipelines in the U.S., and has been criticized by another federal agency for its weak regulation and ineffective oversight. "The proposed route that we show here in the red line we feel with our consultation, with landowners, communities, regulators that we will be able to minimize impacts to the environment," said Jennifer Smith, Manager of Community Engagement for Enbridge. But this is what it comes down to: Enbridge has shown it isn't capable of being a good steward of the Great Lakes. Enbridge’s Line 5 is the pipeline that crosses the Upper and Lower peninsulas of Michigan to transport oil and liquid natural gases to Canada. The line, which carries up to 23 million gallons of crude oil and natural gas liquids from Superior to Sarnia, Ontario, crosses a 12-mile stretch of the tribe's reservation. The documentary studies the impacts of Enbridge's 64-year-old Line 5 pipeline that carries fuel from Wisconsin through Michigan and into Canada. Enbridge is moving about 40 mile of Line 5 outside the Bad River Indian Reservation in Ashland and Iron counties. But last July, the Bad River Band filed a lawsuit to re-route the pipeline around its reservation. That agreement requires Enbridge to maintain the pipeline, and a review of the easement is an important step in determining whether the company is compliant with its provisions. Whitmer has consistently — and correctly — voiced her opposition to the continued presence of oil in the Great Lakes, vowing on the campaign trail to shut Line 5 down. Enbridge has said Line 5 has been operating safely through the reservation since 1953, serving as a vital energy link for northern Wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The scorpion's survival depends on the frog. In 2014, Enbridge proposed the construction of a new route for the Line 3 pipeline which would increase the volume of oil they could transport daily. Both sides in a multi-year battle over the future of Enbridge's Line 5 faced off during an online public hearing before officials with the Army Corps of Engineers. These products heat homes and businesses, fuel vehicles, and power industry. Line 5 crosses over 400 ecologically sensitive wetlands and waterways, but none are as vulnerable as Line 5's path under the water in the Straits of Mackinac where the currents are strong. Despite Enbridge's assurances that the odds of damage to the pipeline are slim, Line 5 has, in fact, been damaged at least twice in the last two years. 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