Credit Lester Graham / Michigan Radio
If Line 5 is still pumping petroleum through the Straits of Mackinac on Thursday, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has notified Enbridge Energy, she will consider all resulting profits to be property of the state of Michigan.
That notice, contained in a letter Whitmer and Department of Natural Resources Director Dan Eichinger wrote Tuesday to Enbridge Executive Vice President Vern Yu, offers the first glimpse into Whitmer’s planned response if the Canadian oil giant follows through with a vow to defy state orders to shut down the pipeline.
It comes as Enbridge is also taking fire from the Bay Mills Indian Community, whose executive council has voted to officially banish Line 5 from its territory a legal action that is considered a punishment of last resort in tribal law. The tribe is calling upon the federal government to enforce the banishment as part of its legal obligation to protect tribal treaty rights to hunt, fish and gather in ce
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The government of Canada is urging a federal judge to stall Line 5 s state-ordered shutdown through the Straits of Mackinac because of ongoing discussions between the Canadian and U.S. governments.
The Canadian government said in an amicus brief served on parties before the Grand Rapids U.S. District Court that the closure of the dual oil pipeline, which was supposed to occur by Wednesday, would result in certain, immediate and serious harm to several important interests.
The government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asked the court to stop the closure until a resolution is reached through court mediation or
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Listen to Kelly House of Environment Watch at Bridge Michigan and Lester Graham of The Environment Report at Michigan Radio explain what s next as Enbridge defies the governor s order to shut down Line 5.
Demonstrators gather in Mackinaw City for a protest against the Line 5 pipeline, which crosses the Straits of Mackinac between St. Ignace and Mackinaw City.
Credit Courtesy: Whitney Gravelle
Enbridge Energy technically has one more day to shut down the Line 5 pipeline in the Straits of Mackinac, but even the pipeline’s most vocal opponents acknowledge slim odds that the oil actually stops flowing right away.
In the six months since Governor Gretchen Whitmer gave Enbridge 180 days to stop transporting petroleum across the tempestuous waterway that links Lakes Michigan and Huron, and the four months since Enbridge vowed to defy her, state officials have been adamant that the order still stands.
Michigan, Enbridge still at odds as Whitmer s deadline to stop Line 5 operations draws near
By Jack Nissen
Gov. Whitmer moves to shut down Enbridge oil pipeline under Straits of Mackinac
Line 5 is the oil pipeline that runs under the Straights of Mackinac. The threat of rupturing beneath the Great Lakes has been on the radar of the Governor and Attorney General Dana Nessel.
LANSING, Mich. - Wednesday will be the last day that Enbridge has to cease operations of its dual pipelines that transport oil under the Straits of Mackinac, according to the state of Michigan.
Six months ago, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer revoked an easement that gave permission to the energy company to run Line 5. The infrastructure has come under scrutiny from environmental advocates and the Whitmer administration over concerns about oil spills in the Great Lakes.