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Hello there,


I am a reporter at FOX 2 in Detroit, and recently I’ve been sent a tip about your website…I am horrified to learn the risk being taken here with our Great Lakes. I would love to pitch a story to my boss for my photog and I to get a day or two to travel up north and put an investigative story together on this. Please shoot me and email when you can so we can set up a time to talk more on this soon.


Thank you,


Hannah Saunders

Reporter, FOX 2 Detroit

Cell: (248) 931-3733

WATCH ( Water Air Team Charlevoix) is interested in becoming a partner of Oil and Water Don’t Mix. How do we proceed?

I went to Lansing with two other dedicated environmentalists on Tuesday January 26th, Mariah Urueta and John Ford. We testified in opposition to House Bill 4540. The Chair, Andrea Lafontaine called my Testimony “compelling”. Later I received an email from Representative Julie Plawecki from Dearborn Heights a Democrat who sits on that committee stating that no action is being taken on that bill at this time. There was not enough support. Although I live in Dearborn Heights, Julie Plawecki is not my representative but she does know who I am. We are advid proponents of a Line 5 shut down altogether.

The national publicity that the Flint water disaster has received is producing results. Please use your resources to alert the national media and help build the groundswell needed to shut down Line 5!!

Are any of you familiar with the website Respectmyplanet.org? If not, you should check it out. It has a wealth of information about the status of oil and gas activity in Michigan—both currently and through the years. In the November issue, it pointed out that 2015 could go down as the slowest month in Michigan’s history when it comes to oil and gas development. The site also includes an interactive map that shows every well site location in Michigan. I’ve been visiting the site for about a year now and have found it very informative. Take a look. http://www.respectmyplanet.org/publications/michigan/oil-gas-exploration/michigan-oil-gas-monthly-november-2015

Is there any talk of a rally in Lansing on the eve or the day of the big international climate change conversations and Paris?

Hey Friends,


You may have heard that on December 12th, students, community members, and anyone concerned about climate change and climate justice are gathering in Ann Arbor, Michigan. In solidarity with 350.org’s day of global action, we’re calling on people from all over the state and nearby regions to come to Ann Arbor and join us to march for a just transition to 100% renewables by 2050.


Many of you have reached out to us, asking how you and your organizations can be involved and support for our cause. In order to show solidarity with this march around the state, we are forming a coalition to create a unified movement to build our common future. This coalition won’t stop at the march though, but will continue to strive for our goal of prompting significant action on climate change – such as a demonstration in our capitol in April.


Climate change is an issue that affects us all, but the hardest effects are felt by those most vulnerable. We need to transition to a fair and clean energy future. Climate change is an issue we can all rally behind for all sort of issues: environmental justice, racial justice, social justice, labor unions, indigenous groups, faith groups, education, environmental groups, etc. We are asking you to join our coalition, and TOGETHER we can determine the demands for this march to our elected officials.


To join the coalition, please reach out to ethan.wampler@gmail.com or njansen@umich.edu. Feel free to forward this email to other groups who might be interested in joining the coalition!


In Solidarity,


The Michigan Climate March Organizers

I am producing a documentary film on climate change in the Great Lakes. The film looks at issues such as invasive species, nuclear power, coal, oil, sewage, and algal blooms. Would you like to sponsor my film? It will be released May 1st.

Where can I get some yard signs?

make yard signs available at your store

Hi, I have a potentially large (maybe too large to simply answer) question related to the removal of Line 5. I am 100% devoted to protecting the great lakes, however, being relatively uneducated about the specific benefit (in all forms related to the operation of their business) to Enbridge using Line 5 instead of an alternative to going under the water, Its hard for me to blindly be for removing the line all together (vs. replacing it with a new one as well as increasing safety regulations etc.). I was hoping somebody could enlighten me about what it would look like for Enbridge to continue regular operations of their services and distribution of oil if line 5 was removed and a different route (possibly a new pipeline that goes around lake Michigan in Wisconsin and then past Chicago and across the state?) was used to transport the oil to Sarnia. Basically, I am curious about what that alternative looks like in more detail and if there are any other potential risks or factors (whether they be simply financial or also environmental: as in, would they need to build a new pipeline and where?) Any Input or answers to this would be greatly appreciated, as I am simply in pursuit of a more well rounded education to alternatives to Line 5 as it is. Thanks!


- Scott

UNLESS YOU’VE ALREADY DONE IT, BLITZ THE MEDIA WITH THE ISSUE. WHEN THE RUPTURE OCCURS YOU CAN BE SURE THEY’LL DO COVERAGE THEN! I AND A FEW FRIENDS HAVE BEEN NIPPING AT THEIR HEELS (RACHEL MADDOW FOR INSTANCE) TO PROD THEM TO DO THE RESEARCH.

Hi James. We bring up the ice cover issue on a regular basis and agree that it is of most concern. Many times it is met with blank stares from Enbridge officials. Officials admit “there’s no real good answer” to recovering oil in the icy Straits . A researcher from University of Michigan did the current study in the Straits. These currents are active with or without ice cover, so we believe you are correct in your assumption that this oil would spread far and wide. We’re working every day in many areas – legal, policy, public awareness – on this issue. Thanks for your concern and for your support! – Bill Latka, Oil & Water Don’t Mix

I realized last night that when talking about this pipeline with friends, that I don’t believe you have addressed or discussed what would happen if a break happens during the winter. A winter spill under the ice would allow that oil to slosh around under the ice for months without any possible way to contain or cleanup – it would be a much greater disaster than your computer model shows during the summer. Maybe you could model what would happen with a spill under the ice – and how that would that ever be cleaned up. The oil would probably span from Chicago to Detroit before the ice is out. I am very concerned – our home is about 1.5 miles from the pipeline. Can this thing be shut down in the winter months?

am trying to find flyers or the likes (if anyone has such) for handing out at the ypsilanti heritage festival. may be a wee late on this, as it is next weekend, 8/21-23, but one never knows. i do not have resources for even printing something out at library.

I’m not receiving e-mails of updated news.

I have some new great lakes graphic designs for sticker and shirts and I would like to offer them to you for sale on your online store. If you are interested in seeing my designs please email me and I will be happy to send you the art files.

I am a former high level employee of the equivalent of the Corps of Engeneers.

In that modality i succesfully challenged Shell on a pipeline through a highly sensitive coastal reserve.

Shell claimed that there was little risk of a loss of more than 5000 barrels in case of a rupture.

I made Shell aware that their gas-oil pipeline would work like a spray bottel and that the pressurize gas would continue to push out oil until all the pressure would have released. I also succesfully claimed that because of the gas pressure, there would be a significant delay b4 sensors could feel the drop in pressure indicating a leak. Shell agreed and took the measures that I demanded. If you want more info, you can contact me.

I am a part owner of a paddle board company. We are interested in spreading the word for this cause at the numerous paddling events that we attend. If you have any documentation we could bring with us we would be happy to present any materials and collect signatures to help the cause. Thank you for your time and I look forward to hearing from you.

Working on a flotilla in the Straits of Mackinac to coincide with Labor Day Mackinac Bridge Walk. "Pipe Out Paddle Protest & Bridge Walk gives two different ways to participate and raise awareness of the two pipelines Indra the Straits of Mackinac. Ultimate goal is to shutdown the pipeline (Line 5). Flotilla will be a highly visible event, puts people out in the waters they are pledging to protect, gets people outdoors and to get exercise.

Let me begin by saying, thank you for the work that you do in educating about, and opposing, petroleum transport affecting the Great Lakes.


I am writing about an issue that I believe should be important to Oil & Water Don’t Mix, as it concerns the Great Lakes: a pipeline called Line 9B. I am wondering whether your organization has any plans to address threats presented by this pipeline to the Great Lakes.


Line 9B is a pipeline that passes from Sarnia to Montreal, directly through many ecologically sensitive waterways, including the St. Lawrence River. It’s difficult to even list the problems with this pipeline in a single e-mail: it is 40 years old, filled with cracks and leaks (which cannot even be properly measured, as the technology used has a 20% margin of error in detecting pipeline “features,” as the company calls them), and has had 35 significant spills in its lifetime. The company that operates the pipeline, Enbridge, is notorious for underreporting spills, so it’s not sure what the real number of spills is.


Enbridge would like to reverse the flow from Mtl-Sarnia to Sarnia-Mtl, switch the contents from conventional crude oil to highly pressurized, toxic, and corrosive diluted bitumen, which the pipeline was not designed to carry (and that sinks instead of floats, in an inevitable spill), and increase the capacity of the pipeline to 300,000 barrels per day, up from 240,000 bpd, by increasing the pressure on the pipeline. Enbridge refuses to do a hydrostatic test on the pipeline, as they say it would hurt the pipeline.


Richard Kuprewicz, a pipeline expert with over 40 years of experience, has estimated the chances of rupture at “over 90%” in the first 5 years- a guaranteed spill would contaminate water for millions of people, likely forcing evacuation due to the toxic chemicals. The number of people affected rises to the tens of millions in the case of contamination of the Great Lakes.


The exact same thing was attempted in Kalamazoo, Michigan- a 40-year-old Enbridge pipeline had it’s contents switched from conventional crude to diluted bitumen, and spilled 3.3 million litres into the Kalamazoo River. That was in 2010, and it has yet to be completely cleaned up, largely because the oil sinks.


The Line 9B pipeline passes through or near 18 Indigenous Reserves. Not a single First Nation has been awarded the free, prior, and informed consent that each group is entitled to for anything that happens on reserve, under Section 35 of the Canadian Constitution. Therefore, there is a legal challenge by the Chippewas of the Thames First Nation that is set to be heard on June 16th.


Regardless of the legal challenge, the National Energy Board may approve this pipeline any day now, and Enbridge has indicated that they intend to have it running by the end of June.


I would very much like to hear of any actions the coalition has planned regarding Line 9B, and would be very open to discussion of future actions, if you have not yet planned any, with the goal of stopping this extremely dangerous pipeline.


Thank you very much,


Rachel Thevenard

Student of Geomatics

University of Waterloo

Hi there,


I work with Great Lakes Commons, a project to envision and protect the Great Lakes as a living, thriving commons that we all care for in perpetuity. We are inspired by your work to keep oil out of the Great Lakes and are interested in actively working with the Oil & Water Don’t Mix coalition. Please let us know how we can become an active member of the coalition? You can learn more about our approach at greatlakescommons.org. Thanks very much and looking forward to hearing from you.

Questions: 1) Are both lines Grade B , x52 wall strength? 2) Were girth welds 100% xrayed or randomly selected in 1953, and can record of radiographic history be subpeoned or obtained via some contractor record? 3) The pipeline marker on your home page sort of defeats the silly notion that the exact location can not be disclosed because of the potential for terrorist activity—can I be sent a picture of this at John McLane 18823 Taft Rd; Big Rapids, MI 49307? Thanks!

The oil pipeline at the Mackinaw Straits is sixty years old. An oil spill could cause serious damage to our magnificent lakes. If there’ a chance to prevent this tragedy from occurring, I would like to participate in the action. Enbridge seems to have a poor track record.

Hello, I’m part of a small theatre ensemble called Children of the Wild (www.childrenofthewild.org) currently looking for partners around the Great Lakes to work with in connecting live performance and environmental action to protect the water masses of the entire Great Lakes region. For the last six months, we’ve been developing a theatre piece that will tour the Great Lakes in 2016, and are presently scouting around the Lakes for possible performance sites and critical stories to share. Our current work is intertwining with the Great Lakes Commons Charter and Riverkeeper. We would similarly love to connect with Oil & Water Don’t Mix. Please let me know if there is someone I could speak with! Thanks, Lindsay (917) 605-2572; lindsayswan711@gmail.com

I support the cause of protecting our water. I wish your promotional video showed more than just white people enjoying it.

Dear OWDM,


i Thought you might find this New York Times story (see link below) of interest.


In light of this information, how can Bill Schuette continue to serve as co-chair of the Michigan Petroleum Pipeline Taskforce Committee? This is a real conflict of interest. He should step down from that position. The NYT article also lists him as among the top 10 attorneys general to receive donations from energy companies. With this in mind, it’s obvious that Schuette cannot make objective decisions when it comes to Michigan’s energy and pipeline related matters.


http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/07/us/politics/energy-firms-in-secretive-alliance-with-attorneys-general.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=first-column-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news


Keep up the great work!


Regards,

Steve Krause

Troy, MI

(PS; I have also written to Gov. Snyder and Schuette about this)