Michigan governor seeks shutdown of Great Lakes oil pipeline

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Associated Press


Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is taking legal action to force the shutdown of a pipeline that carries oil beneath the channel linking Lake Michigan and Lake Huron

By JOHN FLESHER AP Environmental Writer
November 13, 2020, 5:20 PM
• 5 min read

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. -- Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer took legal action Friday to shut down a pipeline that carries oil beneath a channel linking two of the Great Lakes.

Whitmer's office notified Canadian company Enbridge Inc. that it was revoking an easement granted 67 years ago to extend a roughly 4-mile (6.4-kilometer) section of the pipeline through the Straits of Mackinac. The revocation takes effect in 180 days, when the flow of oil must stop.

“Enbridge has routinely refused to take action to protect our Great Lakes and the millions of Americans who depend on them for clean drinking water and good jobs,” the Democratic governor said in a statement. "They have repeatedly violated the terms of the 1953 easement by ignoring structural problems that put our Great Lakes and our families at risk.

“Most importantly, Enbridge has imposed on the people of Michigan an unacceptable risk of a catastrophic oil spill in the Great Lakes that could devastate our economy and way of life.”


Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/michigan-governor-seeks-shutdown-great-lakes-oil-pipeline-74193031

[Ohiogal]

1. Hooray for Gov. Whitmer!

[Karadeniz]

2. Yay!!!!!❤

[Hassler]

3. +1000

[Kid Berwyn]

4. Great news!

https://www.metrotimes.com/news-hits/archives/2020/11/13/whitmer-nessel-move-to-shut-down-enbridges-line-5-pipeline-by-2021



Big Gretchen is helping avert a disaster.

Who knew people could do such things?

[Evolve Dammit]

5. Good for the Governor. This is an ecological disaster, and she knows it. Don't ruin theGreat Lakes.

[DeminPennswoods]

6. PA Dept of Environmental Protection

has shut down the Revolution pipeline that runs through several counties in western Pennsylvania because some of it has been built on unstable hillsides. This pipeline has already ruputured once causing a huge explosion and fire that did extensive damage to a nearby neighborhood because of a landslide. The TX-based pipeline owner hasn't complied with orders to stabilize the piple built on the hills by drilling down to bedrock.

It just highlights the problem with shale drilling. The shale layers are quite slippery and underlay quite a few of the local landslides.

[ancianita]

7. Whitmer IS leadership.

[Hiawatha Pete]

8. Good. Fuck Enbridge.

Kudos to Gov Whitmer. Too bad so many politicians on this side of the border like Alberta Premier "Khmer" Kenney are nothing but mouthpieces for the oil & gas lobby.

[maddogesq]

10. Because BIG GRETCH believes in SCIENCE!

“ Understanding complex water flow patterns

The currents in the Straits of Mackinac are complex, variable, and can be extraordinarily fast. Overall, water flows from Lake Michigan to Lake Huron. However, research has found that it also oscillates (moves back and forth) and changes direction on an average of once every 1.5 days. These exchanges, caused by wind, are often very fast and can move about 80,000 cubic meters of water per second (more than the volume of 32 Olympic swimming pools!) This can cause currents of up to 1 meter per second.”

SOURCE:

https://www.glerl.noaa.gov/res/straits/

As a Michigander it’s comforting to know my governor understands how widespread a spill could become if Line 5 were to bust. Protection of the largest area of fresh water on the planet is JOB ONE!

And yes, I swam in the Straits...brrrrrr