Enbridge Energy has received approval from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) for certain permits required to build a utility tunnel under the Straits of Mackinac to house a proposed replacement for Enbridge’s 68-year old, 540,000-b/d Line 5 dual petroleum products pipelines currently lying on the lakebed. EGLE’s review of the permit applications concluded that the proposed construction of a tunnel beneath the lakebed can be done in compliance with state environmental laws.
EGLE acknowledged public concerns about the existing oil pipeline and affirmed the Michigan Department of Natural Resources’ conclusion that the current pipeline violates the public trust doctrine and poses an unacceptable risk to the Great Lakes.
The permit approvals followed a 9-month review period and cover Enbridge’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Wastewater Permit (NPDES), bottomlands, and wetlands permit applications. EGLE’s permit review confirmed that the proposed tunneling project would have minimal impact on water quality in the Great Lakes and would not affect protected public uses of Michigan’s water resources.
EGLE’s review determined that the proposed project would result in minimal impact to wetlands, estimating wetlands affected to be 0.13 acres, an area roughly one-tenth the size of a football field. Enbridge will be required to protect 1.3 acres of existing Great Lakes coastal wetlands and purchase wetlands credits from a state wetlands mitigation bank to address this impact.
“Although this proposed tunnel project has illuminated numerous related policy issues, the basis for our decision is required to be limited to compliance with the relevant environmental statutes created by our legislature,” said EGLE director Liesl Clark. “Our review showed construction of the proposed tunnel could comply with state environmental laws. We have issued permits designed to ensure that if a tunnel is constructed, it will be in strict compliance with relevant statutes and adhere to stringent protections against impacts to the Great Lakes.”
The EGLE permits do not resolve Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's effort to shut down Line 5's current operations. Enbridge is challenging those efforts in federal court (OGJ Online, Nov. 25, 2020). Permits from the Michigan Public Service Commission and the US Army Corp of Engineers also are still required.
