The Great Lakes Business Network today applauded Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s revocation of Enbridge Energy’s Line 5 operating easement following a comprehensive review by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.
Michigan Can, and Should, Shut Down Line 5
Several recent reports have reinforced the finding that Line 5 presents a huge risk for Michigan families, economy and environment. Candidates should take a strong stand to decommission the oil pipeline.
Canadian Profits, Michigan Risk
This white paper documents that the vast North American oil pipeline network has more than sufficient capacity to ensure that Michigan and Midwest refineries could operate with no economic disruption without Line 5. It also identifies viable solutions that should be implemented to secure necessary propane to Upper Peninsula residents, as well as to transport northern Lower Peninsula oil to southeastern markets.
Lessons to be Gleaned from Expert ‘Alternative Report’ to Line 5
With the June 30 release of an “Alternatives Analysis” commissioned by the State of Michigan, momentum is growing to decommission the Line 5 oil pipelines under the Straits of Mackinac. The conclusions of this analysis, and its popular and political impact in the weeks ahead, represent another crucial step in the march to shut down this catastophe-waiting-to-happen in the heart of the Great Lakes.
Environmental Groups Sound Alarm on Cuts to Great Lakes Restoration Initiative
Environmental Law & Policy Center and Groundwork urge pushback against Trump administration’s war on the Great Lakes and effort to de-fund Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.
Schuette Should Turn Tough Talk on Line 5 Into Real Action
Attorney General Bill Schuette was quoted again this week with his strongest language yet about decommissioning Line 5 under the Straits of Mackinac. Disagreeing with an assertion that the pipeline could last “indefinitely”, Schuette called for a “comprehensive plan … to drive the timeline for the (pipeline’s) closure”. Yet in the same statement he suggested the pipeline could be replaced with a tunnel under the Straits, a risky and expensive alternative that ignores the long-term solution of getting oil to Michigan from other existing pipelines and, ultimately, reducing our demand for oil and transitioning our economy to run on cleaner fuel sources.