AG Nessel seeks court order halting Enbridge Line 5 oil pipeline operations in Straits

Citing a "grave risk of irreparable damage to the Great Lakes," Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel on Monday filed court motions seeking a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction to halt Canadian oil transport giant Enbridge from resuming oil and gas pipeline operations through its underwater Line 5 in the Straits of Mackinac.

The move comes after Enbridge last week reported to the state that it had discovered "significant damage" to an anchor support on one of the twin pipelines on the Straits bottom.

Nessel is calling on the court to order Enbridge to provide all of the information they have on the incident, and keep the underwater pipelines out of operation until the state has conducted a full review of the information with the help of independent experts. She filed the motions in Ingham County Circuit Court, in her office's ongoing lawsuit against Enbridge over Line 5.

Enbridge's Line 5, built in 1953, moves 23 million gallons of oil and natural gas liquids per day east through the Upper Peninsula, splitting into twin underwater pipelines through the Straits, before returning to a single transmission pipeline through the Lower Peninsula that runs south to Sarnia, Ontario.

Enbridge shut down the east and west legs of the underwater pipelines June 18 after discovering damage to an anchor support on the east leg. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer asked Enbridge to provide the state with all information it had about the damaged pipeline, including pictures, video and engineering reports, within 24 hours of her request.

"Enbridge not only failed to provide the requested information but on June 20, the company unilaterally reactivated the west leg of the pipeline without even providing the State with an opportunity to first discuss it," Nessel's office said in a statement Monday.

More: Gov. Gretchen Whitmer questions Enbridge CEO about new Line 5 pipeline damage

Whitmer in response sent another letter to Enbridge, requesting that it immediately shut down the pipeline until it could be further investigated, assessed and preventative measures put in place. The governor also requested Enbridge provide a full report on the cause of the damage and the measures the company would put in place to prevent such damage in the future.

Enbridge didn't provide any information on the damage until earlier Monday, when it sent brief reports on the east and west legs of the pipeline that left several critical questions unanswered, Nessel's office stated.

"It is evident by the pictures we've seen that there has been significant damage to an anchor support on the east leg of the pipeline," Nessel said in a statement. "To date, Enbridge has provided no explanation of what caused this damage and a woefully insufficient explanation of the current condition and safety of the pipeline as a result of this damage.

"We cannot rely on Enbridge to act in the best interests of the people of this State so I am compelled to ask the Court to order them to."

Enbridge, in a statement Monday, said the temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction sought by Nessel are "legally unsupportable, unnecessary, and will be vigorously opposed by Enbridge."

Enbridge shut down both legs of the underwater pipes last Thursday as a precautionary measure after discovering damage to the east leg anchor support through its "thorough maintenance and inspection program," the company stated.

The company has been working with the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, or PHMSA, which regulates interstate oil and gas pipelines in the U.S., since discovering the anchor support damage, Enbridge executive vice president for liquids pipelines Vern Yu said.

Enbridge shared a Sunday letter from Enbridge CEO Al Monaco to Whitmer, which makes clear the company's position that it has to answer to PHMSA on the Line 5 incident.

Enbridge inspected the west leg of Line 5's underwater pipes with remote operated vehicles and discovered no damage to the pipe or anchor supports, Monaco stated.

"After we verified that it is safe to operate the west leg, we discussed our plan to resume normal operations on that line with PHMSA and they had no objections to this plan," he stated.  Enbridge, per PHMSA's directive, resumed operations during the day Saturday, informing "appropriate public officials in the area" and having boats on the water to monitor for any problems.

At PHMSA's request, Enbridge completed an engineering analysis of the forces applied to the anchor support and pipeline on the east leg, with the entire pipeline "thoroughly evaluated for any other damage," Monaco stated in his Sunday letter to Whitmer. He said the assessment of both of the twin pipelines would be sent to Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy Director Liesl Clark and Michigan Department of Natural Resources Director Daniel Eichinger "later tonight (Sunday) or tomorrow (Monday.)"  It was not immediately clear if that assessment was the one Nessel described as insufficient.

Monaco said he would not resume operations of the east leg pipeline "without any discussion with the State of Michigan and approval from PHMSA."

Many residents and environmental groups have long been concerned with aging Line 5's potential to cause a disaster in and around the Great Lakes should it ever fail as a large Enbridge oil transmission line in Marshall did in 2010. That incident prompted one of the biggest inland oil spills in U.S. history, devastating Talmadge Creek and surrounding wetlands and fouling about 38 miles of the Kalamazoo River. The cleanup took four years and cost more than $1 billion.  Enbridge agreed to pay a $61 million civil penalty for the Marshall spill in a settlement with the U.S. Justice Department and Environmental Protection Agency in 2016. 

"Enbridge’s actions to restart the pipeline in the Straits is a stark violation of due care and prudence because of the flawed underlying condition of the pipeline and unknown cause and extent of the damage," said Sean McBrearty, campaign coordinator for Oil and Water Don't Mix, a coalition of individuals, businesses and groups that seek to get Line 5 out of the Straits of Mackinac. 

"The governor and the attorney general have a duty to protect the Great Lakes for the people. Enbridge’s approach of displaying indifference to Gov. Whitmer’s call for the shutdown of Line 5 in the wake of the damage clearly demonstrates the need for the attorney general to take the strong action she did (Monday)."

Contact Keith Matheny: 313-222-5021 or kmatheny@freepress.com.