[Editor's Note: See UPDATE below on Enbridge reports to the State. We received notice of this after our first posting of this article.]
LANSING -- Ingham County Circuit Court Judge James S. Jamo today, June 25, granted Attorney General Dana Nessel’s motion for a temporary restraining order requiring Enbridge Energy to cease all transport operations of its Line 5, twin pipelines which carry crude oil and liquid natural gas in the Straits of Mackinac, and disclose information in its possession related to the recent damage caused to the pipeline’s eastern segment.
The Michigan Department of Attorney General filed motions for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction Monday after Enbridge’s disclosure late last week of significant damage to an anchor support on the east leg of the Line 5 pipelines. The motions were filed in the parties’ ongoing case, Nessel v. Enbridge Energy LP, et al., Case No. 19-474, currently pending in Ingham County Circuit Court.*
In a six-page order, the Court granted the Attorney General’s request and ordered that the east line of the pipeline remain shut down and that the west line, which is currently operating, be shut down as soon as possible, but no later than 24 hours of receipt of the Court’s order. Both lines are to remain closed until the hearing on the Attorney General’s motion for preliminary injunction is held at 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 30.
In granting the temporary restraining order, the Court noted that the 1953 Easement Agreement between the State of Michigan and Enbridge required Enbridge to exercise due care and operate the pipelines as a reasonably prudent person would.
Environmental coalition: Gov. Whitmer needs to revoke 1953 Enbridge easement
Oil and Water Don't Mix, a coalition of groups, tribes and concerned citizens opposed to Line 5, said today that this temporary restraining order requires an urgent response from Gov. Whitmer.
"Today’s decision by Ingham Circuit Court Judge James Jamo giving Enbridge 24 hours to halt transporting oil through Enbridge’s damaged Line 5 pipelines is a clear victory for the Great Lakes and should be followed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer taking action to revoke Enbridge’s 1953 easement agreement with the state," stated Sean McBrearty, Oil and Water Don’t Mix campaign coordinator.
"Revoking the easement has always been the right move to protect the Great Lakes from the urgent and immediate threat from Line 5, but the judge’s order specifically cites violations of the 1953 easement and agreements they made with the state in his decision," Mc Brearty added. "Jamo cites potential 'irreparable harm' to the Great Lakes from Line 5. Clearly, there is urgency for Gov. Whitmer to take appropriate steps to revoke the easement and decommission Line 5. The judge’s conclusions on the facts and the law are a testament to Attorney General Nessel’s concerns that Enbridge is failing to exercise due care in its operation of the 67-year-old pipeline. Gov. Whitmer must act to ensure that the threat of Line 5 to the Great Lakes and Michigan’s economy ends and ends now."**
Additionally, the Court noted that a 2018 agreement between the State of Michigan and Enbridge required Enbridge to share the information related to the recent damage to the pipelines, which Gov. Gretchen Whitmer had requested.
In issuing the temporary restraining order, the Court noted that Enbridge’s "failure to provide sufficient documentation to the State of Michigan related to the nature, extent, and cause(s) of the newly-discovered damage to Line 5 and its supporting infrastructure has resulted in the State’s inability to review or assess any risk of harm arising from the identified damage."
The Court further noted that "the risk of harm to the Great Lakes and various communities and business that rely on the Great Lakes would not only be substantial but also in some respects irreparable."
2018 report led by Michigan Technological University analyzes "worst-case" scenario of a potential Line 5 rupture
The 2018 "Independent Risk Analysis for the Straits Pipelines - final report" by researchers from Michigan Technological University and other universities discussed what would happen if there was a catastrophic pipeline failure: where the oils would go, what would happen to them, and what the ultimate costs to the environment and the taxpayer would be.
"As a result of that, we understand the hydrodynamics and fate and transport issues throughout the Straits region," said Guy Meadows, director of the Michigan Technological University Marine Engineering Laboratory and Robbins Professor of Sustainable Marine Engineering. "We're continuing to work to make the Straits as safe as possible while the public debate goes on about the pipeline."***
Michigan Tech currently operates one buoy in the Straits, and is in the process of adding a second buoy, which could help provide more complete and reliable wave and current measurements. Both the current and future buoy are funded by Enbridge.
"Additionally, we're working on setting up operational high-frequency radar in the Straits that will provide 24/7/365 observations of the Straits once an hour throughout the year. The radar is funded by NOAA through GLOS. All of these efforts are combined to make the Straits as safe as possible," Meadows said.****
Enbridge fails to report cause of pipeline damage
Enbridge reported the pipeline damage to State officials on Thursday, June 18, and shut down both east and west legs of Line 5 to inspect the damage. The company failed to immediately provide the State with information surrounding the incident -- including the cause of the damage -- as requested by Gov. Whitmer in a letter sent Friday, June 19.
Enbridge then unilaterally reactivated the west leg of the pipeline Saturday, June 20, without first providing the State with an opportunity to discuss it.
Gov. Whitmer then sent another letter to Enbridge requesting that the pipeline be shut down immediately until the incident could be investigated and preventive measures put in place.
The company provided a brief summary of the damage to the State Monday, but left several critical questions unanswered -- including the cause of the damage.
Inset photos: Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and Governor Gretchen Whitmer. (Photos courtesy michigan.gov)
UPDATE: DNR, EGLE release Enbridge documents on recent damage to Line 5
On June 25, directors Dan Eichinger of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and Liesl Clark of the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) released engineering reports and photographs received from Enbridge Inc. regarding the recently discovered damage to the Line 5 pipeline in the Straits of Mackinac.
The reports, which are available online, were requested of Enbridge by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Also requested but not yet received from Enbridge: Information about the potential causes of the damage and steps Enbridge may undertake to protect the pipeline from potential future damage.
Click here for the reports and photos depicting damage to anchor support EP-17-1 on the east leg of the Line 5 pipeline within the Straits of Mackinac.
Editor's Notes:
* See: "AG Nessel files motions after Enbridge discloses damage to Line 5 pipeline."
** Click here to join Oil and Water Don't Mix in emailing Gov. Whitmer to call for a shutdown now, and start a process to revoke the Line 5 easement.
*** Click here for links to the "Independent Risk Analysis for the Straits Pipelines - Final Report," as well as its Executive Summary and Appendices.
Click here for the August 13, 2018, presentation on the report.
See the 2018 Michigan Tech article, "Navigating Risk," by Stefanie Sidortsova, for background on this report.
**** See also the Michigan Tech News article "Deploying High-frequency Radar in the Straits of Mackinac," by Kelley Christensen, and her recent article in Michigan Tech's 2020 Research Magazine, "Radar and Risk in the Straits of Mackinac."
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