Governor Gretchen Whitmer today announced the formation of a UP Energy Task Force.
The task force will help identify problems and address solutions to meet the UP’s Energy needs.
The task force will make recommendations about how best to reduce electric rates while securing energy in an environmentally friendly way.
That includes alternatives to distribution of propane through Line 5 in the Straits of Mackinac, which the Governor called an “unacceptable risk” for the Great Lakes.
Ryan Duffy is a spokesperson with Enbridge Energy. He said the Line 5 tunnel is the best long term opportunity to secure the energy needs of the State while making an already safe pipeline even safer.
According to Duffy, the October 2017 Alternative Analysis for the Straits Pipelines commissioned by the State found that there is no viable way of moving the products transported by Line 5 on our other pipelines, competitor pipelines or by rail or truck.
Enbridge also took legal action on Thursday to determine the constitutional validity of the tunnel plan agreement made under the Snyder administration.
The Governor’s order creates a 13 member advisory board which will submit a propane plan with alternatives to the Governor by March of 2020.
Officials with Cloverland Electric, which is based out of Sault Sainte Marie, say they look forward to learning more about the task force and “appreciate the Governor’s attention on the Upper Peninsula’s energy needs.”
Attorney General Dana Nessel applauded the Governor’s decision saying the task force is a necessary step to ensure that “we meet the energy needs of all our state’s residents for generations to come.”