Now, a casual observer might well think that these are unusual circumstances, that Enbridge is resorting to extreme measures because there is so much at stake, that they are faced with a remarkable situation which leaves them no choice but to act in ways that are extraordinary.
But the fact is that there is nothing unusual whatsoever about Enbridge thumbing its nose at local, state, and federal authority. The company has a long history in Michigan of flouting the law, breaking their word, breaching agreements, disregarding ordinances, and violating regulations and the conditions of permits. In short, the record shows that Enbridge does want it wants, with no accountability and no real consequences (paltry fines hardly count). This is why they spend millions of dollars on public relations, print and radio ads, and professional spinmeisters: they work hard to try and burnish their reputation because the truth is so ugly.
So in honor of what later this week will go down as Enbridge’s most shamelessly flagrant disregard for the law yet, here is a Greatest Hits list of just 10 of their many violations of contracts, regulations, and laws ranging from private agreements with individuals to federal statutes:
1. The time Enbridge broke promises to landowners. Instances of this are, in truth, far too numerous to mention. But during the the Line 6B “replacement” project, Enbridge routinely broke verbal promises they made to landowners and violated their “Line List” agreements (the closest thing we could get to legally binding contracts regarding construction behavior). Here’s a representative example that was covered by Michigan Radio back in 2014, near the end of construction. Lots of other examples are available here at the blog as well. I myself have plenty of first-hand experience with this kind of violation.
2. The time Enbridge ignored the Brandon Township Woodlands Ordinance. All during the “replacement” project, Enbridge attempted to barrel their way across the state, ignoring and evading local ordinances. But at least one township had the courage to stand up to them. Here’s that story.
3. The time Enbridge ignored Michigan state law. That disregard for municipal authority was actually also a violation of state law, specifically the Michigan law that requires pipeline companies to seek “local consent” for their construction projects. Enbridge fought tooth and nail against this provision of state law.
4. The time Enbridge violated 11 provisions of a state water permit. About that same time, Enbridge was caught violating the terms of a permit issued by the Michigan DEQ. And chances are they’d have gotten away with it were it not for the vigilance of a local activist.
5. The time Enbridge started remediation work on the Kalamazoo River without local approval– and then lied to the US EPA about it. This is an especially tawdry story from Comstock Township, which involves both disregard for local ordinances and straight-up mendacity.
6. The time PHMSA hit Enbridge with 24 different violations of the federal code. Following an investigation into the causes of the 2010 Kalamazoo River spill, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration found that Enbridge had violated two dozen provisions of federal pipeline safety regulations.
7. The time Enbridge violated the federal Clean Water Act. In addition to the above citation from PHMSA, Enbridge eventually reached a settlement with the Department of Justice for violations of the Clean Water Act. The settlement included $177 million in fines.
8. The time Enbridge violated the terms of its settlement with the Department of Justice. You would think that reaching an agreement with the DoJ would be a pretty big deal, a big enough deal that it would cause a company to remain on the straight and narrow. But that’s not how Enbridge rolls. They wasted little time violating the terms of the consent decree– resulting in still more fines.
9. The other time Enbridge violated the terms of its settlement with the Department of Justice. You might also think that having violated the terms of the settlement with the DoJ, Enbridge would strive to do better and not violate the settlement again. But remember, we’re talking about a company that, according to available evidence, is literally incapable of following the rules. More violations. More fines.
10. The time Enbridge spent more than a half century violating the terms of its easement with the state of Michigan. All of which brings us to Line 5. As the Governor’s order makes devastatingly, disturbingly clear, Enbridge has shown a shocking disregard for the due care clauses of its Line 5 easement for more than 50 years. For a succinct, compelling summary of those violations, check out this video. Finally, at long last, someone has the temerity to hold Enbridge accountable. In response, Enbridge has taken to whining and fear mongering and enlisting all of their powerful friends in the petrochemical industry and the Canadian government. But as this list makes clear, an action like this is long overdue. If you or me or anyone else engaged in this kind of pattern of lawbreaking, we’d almost certainly be locked up in jail.
So there it is, 10 of Enbridge’s Greatest Hits of lawlessness. On Wednesday, May 12, with all the arrogance that comes from immense power and resources, they’ll turn it up to 11.
Governor Whitmer announced today that she won’t have it. And even more good news is that a whole bunch of really amazing people, people I admire immensely, will be gathering around the state this week to join the Governor in saying “no more!” Here’s more information regarding the where and the what.
We need to get Enbridge out of our Great Lakes and out of our state government. Enbridge doesn’t care what damage it causes as long as it can pump millions of gallons of crude oil through our old beat up Great Lakes pipelines. It will take a lot of power an numbers of Michiganders to stop this pipeline company. Last I read,,, they are still uninsured so there is no way Enbridge count mount even a half assed cleanup or reimburse anyone to do the work for them. Most large, smart companies will not allow a company to put their business in danger unless the money to fix an error is readily available to the party of the first part.This is a mess that has been tolerated for much too long. What is it going to take to kick this pipeline out of our state????
I commend the environmental voice presented here which is very important to ensuring responsible action taken by energy companies. In reading through the article and comments I thought it worthwhile to share some challenges associated with shutting down Line 5.
Shutting down the pipeline is not without major immediate consequences to everyday life. If Enbridge shuts down the pipeline today within the week gas stations in Michigan and Ontario will run out of fuel to fill up cars, farm equipment, and food delivery trucks reliant on diesel delivered by this pipeline. Much of the energy we use to get to work, heat buildings and support industrial processes is delivered by this pipeline.
The alternative to pipelines is trucking and rail which have higher incident rates than pipelines. The statistics are around 3 accidents per 1 million miles driven by commercial vehicles, while smaller events they happen far more frequently. It is a complicated scenario and the stability of society is directly related to a stable supply of energy. There isn’t a suitable alternative to the pipeline in the short term. The new tunnel containing new pipes is the best transitional solution to maintain stability of supply and minimize the risk of a spill into the great lakes as any spill along this stretch of piping would be contained by the tunnel which also allows for the visual inspection of the pipes.
I have experience with renewable energy installations and propane trucking logistics, I can not see a short term substitute for the scale of energy supply through this pipeline. Michigan’s legal position is to ensure all responsibility of an incident falls on Enbridge while politically absolving themselves of any responsibility. The responsible strategy for society’s stability and the protection of the environment is to facilitate the tunnel as soon as possible because Michigan is unable to operate without this energy and the Great Lakes need to be protected by an advanced pipeline system.
Thanks so much for your comment. I certainly welcome conversation here. Unfortunately, you are demonstrably incorrect on almost every count. Viable alternatives to Line 5 have by now been very well established. And the shut down of Line 5 after an anchor strike back in 2020 demonstrated quite clearly that the absence of the pipeline will have virtually no effect whatsoever on fuel supplies or prices. Finally, a tunnel is anything but a near term solution; it would only lock us in to– for 100 years!– to what everyone by now knows is a soon to be obsolete energy regime. It’s a backward, not forward, looking “solution.” Best, -j.
If they don’t want to, and they don’t, there’s almost nothing that can make them shut that line down. They’ll ignore the fine assessment and fight that in court. Physically it is not a simple thing to shut off a pipeline if the operator won’t cooperate.
Not to state the obvious or anything…
Keep the line open, governor has to idea of the consequences that it would make