Michigan Panel Urges Temporary Shutdown Of Mackinac Pipeline

LANSING (WWJ.AP) - A government panel is urging the temporary shutdown of twin oil pipelines in the Straits of Mackinac until the company that operates them can finish inspections and repair coating gaps.

The Michigan Pipeline Safety Advisory Board on Monday approved the non-binding resolution after some board members expressed opposition to a recent deal between Gov. Rick Snyder's administration and Canadian pipeline operator Enbridge Inc., regarding Line 5.

The board was not consulted in the agreement, which included a trigger for a temporary shutdown of flow through the pipeline in "adverse weather conditions," defined as when waves reached an average of 8 feet. While those conditions were met last week, the resolutions urge that definition to be modified to three feet and include ice cover and other conditions when the Coast Guard would be impeded from an oil spill response.

"These resolutions seek to strengthen the agreement the Governor signed with Enbridge so that it actually does what it purports to do: provide a path forward for determining the future of Line 5 while protecting the Great Lakes," said Mike Shriberg, executive director of the National Wildlife Federation Great Lakes Regional Center and a member of the Pipeline Safety Advisory Board, who co-sponsored the resolutions. "While the few services Line 5 provides to Michigan have been shown to have feasible alternatives, there is no substitute for the Great Lakes and our way of life."

Other resolutions OK'd Monday call on the state to propose an amendment to close the pipelines if waves are higher than 3 feet, rather than 8.

Line 5 carries 23 million gallons (87 million liters) daily between Superior, Wisconsin, and Sarnia, Ontario. Long-term options include placing the lines in an underground tunnel or shutting them down.

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