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On Tuesday, activists held a press conference in front of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s office to urge her administration to make the right decision and reject Enbridge’s Great Lakes fossil fuel tunnel scheme ahead of a key deadline.

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) will conclude the public comment period for permits that will allow construction for Enbridge’s Line 5 oil tunnel on August 29. Tuesday’s press conference urged Governor Whitmer and EGLE Director Phil Roos to take a more vocal role against the oil tunnel, arguing that Michigan residents do not want to see the state government give Enbridge, a foreign corporation, an exclusive lease to publicly-owned infrastructure for at least 99 more years. This project would also destroy wetlands in the heart of the Great Lakes, directly pollute 27 million metric tons of carbon dioxide annually, and create the risk for an explosion in one of the world’s most sensitive freshwater ecosystems that generates billions in economic activity.

View the Press Conference on YouTube

Adorned with a visual backdrop of origami fish that recently broke the world record for the largest display of its kind, press conference participants arrived following a virtual meeting with EGLE departmental staff discussing their concerns with the permitting process. Individuals also delivered handwritten comments from Michigan residents to the offices of both the governor and EGLE, urging her administration to show leadership in this critical moment.

“Right now we need Gov. Whitmer to do the right thing, and that means rejecting the Line 5 oil tunnel plan,” said Sean McBrearty, campaign coordinator, Oil & Water Don’t Mix Coalition. “Gov. Whitmer stood up against Big Oil when she revoked Enbridge’s easement to operate Line 5, and she has the chance to do the same thing today.” 

“Michigan’s 12 federally recognized Tribal Nations want to see Line 5 shut down because it is a direct threat to our sovereignty and way of life,” said Nichole Keway Biber, organizer, Clean Water Action, tribal citizen of Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians. “Our state government should respect treaties with Tribal Nations, not encourage 99 years more of foreign oil profits at the expense of our Great Lakes. We need to shut down Line 5 and reject Enbridge’s tunnel scheme.” 

Pressure is mounting to reject Enbridge’s Line 5 oil tunnel, but the clock is ticking for the public to weigh in ahead of EGLE’s deadline. Individuals who wish to speak against the oil tunnel proposal have until August 29, and they can do so via a portal on OWDM’s website. EGLE is expected to announce its decision on Enbridge’s permit applications in the coming months, as is the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. However, the Army Corps is undertaking a separate permitting process for the tunnel project marred by President Trump’s bogus “energy emergency” executive order. With the Trump administration’s impulsive and erratic decision-making, Whitmer has an opportunity to step up and protect our Great Lakes from corporate polluters like Enbridge. 

“The EGLE public comment period is our last chance to weigh in on whether or not the Great Lakes oil tunnel becomes a reality,” McBrearty continued. “Gov. Whitmer and EGLE Director Roos have an important decision to make: will they side with a foreign corporation with a history of polluting Michigan communities, or will they stand up for a safer, cleaner, and healthier state that rejects dirty fossil fuel expansion?”

The proposed Line 5 tunnel would destroy wetlands, disrupt aquatic habitats, and perpetuate our reliance on fossil fuels during a critical time for climate action. Because the Army Corps is truncating its environmental impact statement (EIS) process for this project, EGLE must assert a more heavy-handed role in ensuring that all aspects of tunnel construction are properly accounted for before issuing a permitting decision.