Governor Gretchen Whitmer filed a response brief in Enbridge’s lawsuit over the Line 5 dual pipelines, which sit exposed on the lakebed in the Straits of Mackinac and transport oil through the Great Lakes. Enbridge filed the lawsuit in 2020, after the Governor and the Director of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources revoked Enbridge’s easement.
Governor Whitmer’s brief challenged Enbridge’s claim that it can continue to pump oil through the Great Lakes regardless of what the State of Michigan says and reiterated that Line 5 constitutes an unparalleled risk to the public and the health of the Great Lakes.
“The Great Lakes power Michigan’s economy, supply drinking water to millions, and define our way of life,” said Governor Whitmer. “Protecting these natural treasures is a top priority. My brief continues my seven-year fight to stop Enbridge from pumping oil through the Great Lakes. Michigan must have a say in what runs through our waters. We must get Line 5 out of the water and work together to protect our precious Great Lakes for generations to come.”
The Great Lakes are home to 21% of the world’s fresh surface water. The lakes supply drinking water for more than 40 million people and support a $9.3 trillion regional economy, including hundreds of thousands of jobs in Michigan. The Line 5 pipeline is a ticking time bomb that could lead to an oil spill in the Great Lakes, which would put families and small businesses across the region at risk.
Enbridge has a troubling environmental record. Most notably, an Enbridge pipeline ruptured in 2010, causing one of the worst inland oil spills in U.S. history and dumping one million gallons of oil into a tributary of the Kalamazoo River.
“Enbridge’s brief is heavy on policy and light on law. It scarcely engages with the State Officials’ arguments. Instead, Enbridge seeks to lock in the benefits of the 1953 easement in perpetuity—while evading its own obligations… Enbridge is wrong.”
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