Good news from Ingham County, the three Michigan CATS who have been in jail, remanded needlessly and gratuitously by a chest-thumpin judge, have been released. At their sentencing yesterday, they were given probation for a year. We’re glad that these committed individuals can finally return home to their family and friends and continue their good work.

In other news this week, the AP’s John Flesher has an excellent story about Line 5 under the straits of Mackinac. The story has been getting lots of national play, attention that is much deserved (and, we should add, a credit to our friend Beth Wallace, who has done so much to get this story in the public eye).

In other Enbridge news, the company just announced plans to embark upon yet another “replacement” project. This one would “replace”– by which Enbridge means installing new pipe– Line 3, which runs for more than 1.,000 miles between Alberta and Superior, Wisconsin. It’s not entirely clear whether this project will trigger the presidential permit process, since it crosses an international border. Enbridge, we’re sure, will call it an “integrity driven” project in hopes of avoiding that– just as they did with Line 6b. We’ll post more about this later today. In the meantime, you can read more at DeSmog Canada and SURF Great Lakes.

One other notable Enbridge item: the National Energy Board in Canada will announce its decision today on the Line 9 reversal. In anticipation of this decision, we’ve got something special coming today from our Canadian friend Emily Ferguson. Stay tuned later this morning for that!

Lastly, the New York Times this week ran a deeply disturbing cautionary tale about the failures of our regulatory systems. Although the story is about the handling of coal ash in North Carolina, we see in it so much of the short-sighted, weak-willed, corporate-driven mindset that typifies pipeline safety regulations and regulators, betraying the public interest. If you want to know why we’ve spent so much of our time writing and thinking about seemingly dull regulatory matters– like the MPSC and PHMSA– this story is why.

Finally, the Line 6B Citizens’ Blog now has its very own Facebook page. Please head over there and “like” us!