Enbridge agrees to redo key permit for Line 5 tunnel project

Mackinac Bridge on May 28, 2024 (Photo: Anna Liz Nichols)

Earlier this week, Enbridge agreed it would not act on a 2021 permit from the Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE), which is one of three permits the Canadian pipeline company needs to move forward with its controversial Line 5 tunnel project.

Michigan’s Tribal Nations and environmental advocates have repeatedly raised concerns about Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline, which runs through the Straits of Mackinac where Lake Michigan and Lake Huron connect. The pipeline transports about 23 million gallons of crude oil and liquid natural gas through the straits daily, with University of Michigan Researcher David Schwab calling the region the worst possible place for a Great Lakes oil spill.

Concerns of a spill increased after the pipeline was dented by an anchor strike in 2018. In response, Enbridge proposed moving the dual pipelines in the straits into a concrete-lined tunnel embedded in concrete beneath the lakebed.

In order to proceed with the project, Enbridge must receive permits from EGLE, The Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) and the United States Army Corps of Engineers.

Both EGLE and the Public Service Commission approved permits for the project, both of which were subsequently challenged by the Bay Mills Indian Community, with the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians and the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi joining Bay Mills in contesting the permit issued by the MPSC.

The Army Corps of Engineers announced in March 2023 that it would extend its environmental review for the Line 5 tunnel project with the corps now expected to issue its draft environmental impact statement in spring 2025, which Enbridge said would push the start of construction into 2026. The company’s permit from EGLE is set to expire on Feb. 25, 2026.

While the Bay Mills Indian Community’s appeal of the EGLE permit was put on hold as Enbridge conducted further surveys of wetlands, Debbie Chizewer an attorney with Earthjustice, which is representing the Bay Mills Indian Community in challenging EGLE permit told the Advance they were informed by both EGLE and Enbridge that the company would need to apply for a new water resources permit incorporating the results of the new wetlands surveys.

EGLE, Enbridge and the Bay Mills Indian Community were encouraged to reach an agreement in the contested case for the permit, with the parties later stipulating that the case would be dismissed on the condition Enbridge will not act on, attempt to use, or otherwise engage with the previously issued water resources permit, and will allow it to expire on its own terms on Feb. 25, 2026.

“I think it is a win, because now EGLE is going to have the opportunity to go back and do a better job than it did last time, right? We brought a contested case because they hadn’t adequately considered all the impacts and Tribal interests, and now they will have the opportunity to do that and get it right,” Chizewer said.

The Bay Mills Indian Community and Earth Justice argue EGLE did not have an accurate picture of the wetlands that would be damaged by the construction of the Line 5 tunnel project, and that its analysis of Tribal interests and cultural resources was inadequate.

The Native American Rights Fund , which has also supported Bay Mills in challenging the EGLE permit, notes that the Straits of Mackinac are integral to the community’s daily practices of cultural lifeways, and are full of historic and archaeological sites .

Enbridge spokesperson Ryan Duffy did not respond to an emailed request for comment.

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