Political and business leaders have been congregating on Mackinac Island this week to discuss state policy, but this afternoon about 150 people showed up to protest the Line 5 tunnel, ahead of Govenor Gretchen Whitmer's address at the policy conference. WCMU's Teresa Homsi was there and spoke with News Director Rick Brewer while on the island.
Editor's note: This transcript has been lightly edited for clarity and length. You can listen to this conversation by clicking the LISTEN button above.
Rick Brewer: Teresa, can you start by describing the scene on Mackinac Island this Thursday afternoon?
Teresa Homsi: So, you have your usual mix of tourists and horse drawn carriages, and then there's conference attendees for the Mackinac Policy Conference, and they're all dressed in suits and business casual clothes, and they've got name tags.
And then add on a large group of protesters wearing black t-shirts that say, “No Line 5 Oil Tunnel." This group met in front of the Fort Mackinac and walked silently downtown.
Nichole Keway Biber is an activist and a member of the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians. She said the silent walk represents the "gravity" of a potential oil spill in the region.
"It's something that necessitates a real contemplation," Biber said. "I think of the worst-case scenario that we all need to avoid by doing our very best to be responsible for the water that we all are dependent upon."
The plan for protesters was to walk to the Grand Hotel and speak outside of the building where the conference and the governor were.
But a group of Michigan State Police officers on bikes stopped the procession, saying that the sidewalk leading to the hotel was private property, and the group could not walk on the road.
It was a calm exchange, and an officer suggested the group "use any other public roadway," including walking down M-185.
The group rerouted and set up along the shoreline, but made it known that their plans had changed.
"Who are the sponsors there (at the policy conference)? DTE and Enbridge, they're sponsoring this," said Andrea Pierce with the Michigan Environmental Justice Coalition. "They get firsthand with our legislators, and we can't even walk by the Grand Hotel."
RB: And Teresa, we know the group is protesting the pipeline and the tunnel, but what were other specific demands they had?
TH: This gathering comes ahead of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, releasing a draft environmental impact statement on Friday, which is part of a federal permit process necessary for the tunnel.
Seven tribal nations withdrew from the process because they say their concerns about the project's environmental and cultural impacts were disregarded. That permit process was also fast-tracked after an emergency order from the Trump administration, claiming that there is an energy emergency, so that expedited a lot of federal projects, including the Line 5 tunnel one.
So, the tribes and environmental groups at the rally here on Mackinac Island were calling on the State of Michigan to deny two separate permits that are also necessary for the project. But this is through the state where these groups feel like they have more confidence that state regulators will hear their concerns.
Sean McBrearty with Oil and Water Don’t Mix, which organized the rally, called on Governor Whitmer to "tell her constituents which side she's on." She's been an opponent of the pipeline, but silent on the tunnel.
"Because if there's an oil spill here today, her whole time as governor will be an asterisk in that story," he said.
RB: And Teresa, what's the status of the state permits?
TH: So, the state permits are necessary for the project, but they also have to be granted before the federal Army Corps can approve the overall project.
And the Army Corps aims to make a decision on that federal permit this fall. The state hasn't released its schedule yet, but that's expected to be announced soon.
In a statement, the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy, which is the authority that's overseeing the state permits, said that they're committed to protecting the Great Lakes, and they're following the regulatory process.
And Enbridge has said the tunnel would make the pipeline safer. In a statement regarding the state permits, a spokesperson said that environmental protection is important to the company, stating that the permit applications have all the appropriate data necessary.
RB: Teresa Homsi reporting from Mackinac Island. Teresa, thanks for your time, we appreciate it.
TH: Yes, thank you.
Editor's note: Enbridge is a sponsor of WCMU. We report on them as we do with any other organization.
