TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. — Governor Gretchen Whitmer has revoked a 1953 easement that allows the Canadian company Enbridge to continue pumping oil through a four-mile section of its pipeline under the Straits of Mackinac. The revocation takes effect in 180 days, when Line 5 flow must stop. Whtmer said that Enbridge has routinely refused to take action to protect the Great Lakes and millions of Americans who depend on the lakes for clean drinking water and jobs. “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.”
20-inch pipe
Line 5 is part of an Enbridge network that moves 23 million gallons of oil a day across northern Michigan and Wisconsin. Responding to Whitmer’s action, the company called Line 5 safe and said it has never leaked. The company cited a recent review validated by federal regulator.