We’re working as furiously (pun intended) as we can on the second installment of our new series focused upon our conversation with Enbridge VP Mark Sitek. We’ve decided to use the series as a way of diagnosing the (hopefully curable) malady from which, in our view, Enbridge suffers. But we’re interrupting that work to bring you a story we just heard. File it under: Making Sure Enbridge Behaves During Construction.
But before recounting it, a quick word to our Enbridge readers: here at the Line 6B Citizens’ Blog, we hear LOTS of stories, most of them rather awful in their portrayal of Enbridge. Most of those stories we don’t tell, either out of respect for the parties who told them to us or, equally important, because we can’t verify them. That is to say, we are willing to be unflinching in our criticism of Enbridge when we think it’s warranted, but we are NOT in the business– and I think our work shows this– of simply passing along every rumor or third-hand tale of alleged Enbridge nefariousness that crosses our desk. Because we want to be fair, we demonstrate more forbearance in this regard than you know. What matters to us more than anything else is the truth.
Having said that, we have complete and total trust in the veracity of our source for this story. So here it is:
A family with property along the pipeline– it’s their retirement home– had their yard torn up by Enbridge for an integrity dig in 2010-11. As is the case with so many people we’ve spoken to, their property was never properly restored– grass never grew, rocks are everywhere – the same scenario we’ve heard countless times. During the integrity dig, the family endured 24/7 construction very close to their home, as well as round-the-clock spotlights, the dust, the noise–the whole thing. They describe the construction as living hell.
In 2012, their Enbridge ROW agent for the Line 6B replacement project assured them repeatedly that this construction would be different (we heard the same thing when we expressed our worries about restoration). The agent insisted that there would be reasonable work hours, no night work, and certainly no spotlights. But just this past Wednesday, Enbridge worked until after 9:30 pm, and guess what was shining brightly through the family’s windows?
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again (as many times as we have to): and Enbridge wonders why people don’t trust them.