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Report says Line 5 sustainable indefinitely; critics disagree

Flickr User Kevin Dooley https://flic.kr/p/gzyit9

A report released Thursday outlines alternatives to running an energy pipeline beneath the Great Lakes.

The report also says Enbridge’s Line 5 is safe to operate for the foreseeable future.

More than 23 million gallons of oil and natural gas travel through Line 5 daily, including a five-mile stretch that runs beneath the Straits of Mackinac.

Enbridge says the report shows its maintenance and improvements are working to keep the 65-year-old pipeline reliable and safe.

But David Holtz of the Sierra Club says there is no risk-free way to operate a pipeline in the Great Lakes.

“The Great Lakes are no place for oil pipelines.”

John Gauderman is the Great Lakes regional operations manager for Enbridge. He says the finding is not a surprise to the energy company.

“After more than 60 years in service, Line 5 is in outstanding operating condition because of the rigorous maintenance done through the decades.”

Liz Kirkwood is with the group For the Love of Water.

“The Great Lakes belong to all of us as citizens. The state can’t afford to get this wrong.”

The report says workable alternatives to the line include burying the pipeline underground. That approach has been endorsed by Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette, who co-chairs a pipeline task force.

Enbridge says it’s always working to maintain and upgrade the 65-year-old pipeline. The report says the biggest threat to the pipeline is an errant ship’s anchor hooking into it.

A report that says an underwater pipeline is the best option for moving oil and gas through

Michigan’s attorney general is calling for a timeline to shut down an oil and gas pipeline that runs beneath the Great Lakes.