Wisconsin Agency Approves Two Permits For Enbridge’s Line 5 Reroute Project

Wedoany.com Report-Nov 16, Wisconsin’s Department of Natural Resource (DNR) Nov. 15 issued waterway and wetland permits for Enbridge’s 41-mile Line 5 oil pipeline reroute project, moving the contested project closer to construction.

The proposed project involves construction of a new, replacement segment of the Line 5 pipeline so that none of the line traverses the Bad River Reservation, home to the Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians.

Enbridge described the DNR’s decision as an “important step in the permitting process for the Line 5 Wisconsin Segment Relocation Project, which will keep affordable and reliable energy flowing to Wisconsin and the Great Lakes Region.” The company applied for permits for the project in 2020.

“Construction will begin as soon as all necessary permits and approvals have been received,” Enbridge added in a Nov. 15 press release.

Enbridge still needs four additional DNR permits—for discharge of hydrostatic test water, dewatering of groundwater, burning of slash and incidental take of listed species—and approval from the US Army Corps of Engineers before the project can proceed, DNR said in a news release.

DNR’s wetland and waterway permit allows Enbridge to conduct specific construction-related activities that impact navigable waterways and wetlands, DNR said Nov. 15. The permit contains more than 200 conditions to ensure compliance with the state's wetlands and waterways standards.

The Construction Site Storm Water General Permit authorizes Enbridge to conduct land-disturbing construction activities.

The project must be complete by Nov. 14, 2027, or the permits are revoked, DNR said. Enbridge must follow its filed construction plans, abide by all DNR’s conditions, hire environmental monitors, and allow DNR officials to access the project site during reasonable hours, according to the final decision.

The reroute of the pipeline comes in response to a 2023 order by a federal judge in Wisconsin that Enbridge reroute the pipeline off an Indian tribe’s territory or shut it down. The judge had expressed doubt that Enbridge could complete the reroute in time, given opposition by the tribe, environmental groups, and both the US Environmental Protection Agency and the National Park Service. The judge also ordered Enbridge to pay $5.15 million to the tribe and to pay additional amounts until the line is off the tribe’s land (OGJ Online, July 3, 2023).

Labor unions, construction and business groups lauded the decision, but the tribe expressed disappointment, and an environmental group threatened legal action following the DNR’s approval.

“Wisconsin law makes it clear that projects causing harm to our waters must meet a high bar to move forward,” said Evan Feinauer, an attorney for Clean Wisconsin. “Given the enormous impacts that construction of this pipeline would cause, we are skeptical that the proposed project meets these legal standards.”

The proposed pipeline route will cross 186 waterways and hundreds of acres of wetlands and is upstream of Copper Falls State Park, Clean Wisconsin noted.

“We will evaluate what actions are needed to protect our state,” Feinauer said, adding that under state law, Clean Wisconsin can challenge the permits and petition a judge to pause construction until the challenge is resolved.

The Bad River Band, which initially filed suit in 2019 and opposes the reroute because it would still run through the Bad River watershed, warned that the project requires blasting, drilling, and trenching across waterways and streams that could threaten aquatic species and pollute critical waterways.

“I’m angry that the DNR has signed off on a half-baked plan that spells disaster for our homeland and our way of life,” Robert Blanchard, chairman of Bad River Band, said in a statement.

Line 5, a 30-in. OD line, which has operated for about 70 years, carries about 540,000 b/d of crude oil and propane. Running from Superior, Wis. to Sarnia, Ont., it serves 10 refineries in Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Ontario, and Quebec, according to Enbridge.