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Erosion leads to 81 feet of unsupported pipeline in the straits as Enbridge awaits approvals

C & D Amundsen

Enbridge Energy alerted state officials on Wednesday that an 81 foot span of the oil pipeline in the straits of Mackinac is unsupported.

According to their 1953 easement with the state, unsupported spans should be no greater than 75 feet long.

Officials with Enbridge say the company sought additional supports in March of 2018, when the unsupported span was only 66 feet. They are still waiting for approval from the Army Corps of Engineers to approve 54 new supports.

Ryan Duffy is a spokesperson for Enbridge.

“We actually do have a crew out in the straits,” Duffy said. “They have a steel support anchor ready to go. It would take them two days to complete the work, they just need to get that permit.”

Duffy added if the Governor would approve a plan to place the pipeline in a tunnel the eroding lakebed wouldn’t be a problem.

“You wouldn’t have to deal with new steel supports you wouldn’t have to worry about spans if you had the tunnel and the pipeline inside a tunnel 100 feet below the lakebed well protected,” he said.

Enbridge is currently suing the state saying it has to abide by a plan the company reached with Governor Snyder to build a tunnel to house the pipeline.

Liz Kirkwood is with the Environmental Group, FLOW. She said she was unsurprised that a span of the line is unsupported.

“Every time Enrbidge does an inspection they discover yet another area that exceeds these terms,” she said.

Kirkwood said the line is an old piece of infrastructure and will ultimately fail.

“It is imperative that we apply the precautionary principle and the rule of law and ensure that we are not putting our Great Lakes in jeopardy,” Kirkwood said.

Ryan Duffy, with Enbridge, said the unsupported line poses no safety risk.

Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s office said they are reviewing the situation.

In written comments the Attorney General said the fact that 15 feet of lakebed eroded in a year shows how strong the currents can be and highlights the importance of decommissioning the line. The Attorney General has sued to shut down Line 5, alleging Enbridge is violating their 1953 easement with the state.