October 04, 2024
Lansing, MI – The Environmental Law & Policy Center (ELPC) and Michigan Climate Action Network (MiCAN) filed a reply brief urging the Michigan Court of Appeals to reverse the Michigan Public Service Commission’s flawed order approving a permit for Enbridge to build its “Line 5” oil pipeline tunnel in the lakebed of the Straits of Mackinac. ELPC and MiCAN intervened in the Commission’s tunnel permit application process, contending that Enbridge’s proposed project not only poses a dangerous risk for a catastrophic oil spill in the Great Lakes but also increases climate change impacts and undermines Michigan’s clean energy transition.
“Enbridge’s proposal to extend the life of its 70-year-old Line 5 oil pipeline crossing the environmentally-sensitive Straits of Mackinac should be rejected. The Commission needs to take another look at this project and fully and fairly assess the feasible alternatives to the proposed tunnel that would be better to avoid climate and environmental risks,” said David Scott, Senior Attorney at ELPC. ELPC attorneys are representing both ELPC and MiCAN.
“Enbridge is attempting an end run around Michigan policymakers who have already determined that the best option is to shut down Line 5,” said Dr. Denise Keele, MiCAN’s Executive Director. “Constructing a tunnel to transport Enbridge’s crude oil is not only dangerous but undermines the State of Michigan’s goal of 100% clean energy by 2040 by investing in unnecessary fossil fuel infrastructure that will continue to contribute to climate change too far into the future.”