Voices of support: Line 5 and the Great Lakes Tunnel
Enbridge stands ready to build an underground tunnel to house Line 5 at the Straits of Mackinac.
Through a series of agreements with the State of Michigan, we committed to develop and build this tunnel beneath the Straits—a significant private investment in Michigan—while ensuring the safe operation of the existing dual lines at the Straits until the replacement line is complete.
We believe our Line 5 Straits tunnel plan is the best way to ensure continued energy supply in Michigan, and avoid major disruptions and price increases that would result if Line 5 were shut down prior to completion of the tunnel.
We’re not alone. Public support for our Line 5 tunnel plan has come from elected officials, policy experts, business owners, business leaders and media columnists—from Michigan and elsewhere.
See below for a sampling of their comments.
July 21, 2022
“Across the Atlantic, the European Commission is crafting a rationing plan to cope with a cutoff of the Nord Stream pipeline, and is stockpiling as much fuel as it can. That’s not a place where Michigan ever wants to find itself. Enbridge should be given the green light to build the tunnel, and all the help it needs to get it done in a hurry.”
—Detroit News editorial
June 11, 2022
“Closing Line 5 only causes problems — for our environment, our economy and taxpayer pocketbooks. Instead of more uncertainty, let’s enact solutions that strengthen our energy future, position us for economic prosperity and provide the best protection of our Great Lakes.”
—Jim Holcomb, President and CEO, Michigan Chamber of Commerce,
and Rocco Rossi, President and CEO, Ontario Chamber of Commerce
March 13, 2022
“Americans are already paying an average of $4 for a gallon of gasoline these days. And if Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer succeeds in shutting down Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline, consumers will pay even more in the Midwest . . . At a time when the U.S. should be focusing on energy stability and security, Ms. Whitmer's ideological hostility to pipelines threatens more economic harm and consumer pain.”
—Wall Street Journal editorial
March 10, 2022
“With gasoline prices hitting jarring levels and home heating costs projected to be up 30% for the season, imagine how much worse the impact of the energy crisis would be had Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Attorney General Dana Nessel succeeded in shutting down Line 5. Actually, we don't have to imagine. A new study by an industry group says that without the petroleum pipeline across the Straits of Mackinac, Michigan residents would pay between $1.8 billion and $2.2 billion more for fuel and related products . . . Continuing to press for the pipeline’s closure runs counter to those efforts. Halting the attack on Line 5 would demonstrate that both the governor and the president are committed to shielding Americans from crushing fuel cost increases.”
—Detroit News editorial
Nov. 22, 2021
“Any disruption in Line 5 operations would have a devastating impact on the economy of Northwest Ohio, further harming industry supply chains, eliminating thousands of good-paying jobs, and increasing the cost of fuel for transportation, heat for homes, and products Americans use every day.”
—Ohio Gov. Mike Dewine
and Lt. Governor Jon Husted
Nov. 20, 2021
"No one should cheer if Line 5 stops operating. The result would be energy shortages and even higher prices for home heating fuels like natural gas and propane — not to mention the loss of tens of thousands of jobs and jeopardizing billions of dollars in economic activity in the Great Lakes region."
—Kevin Sunday, Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry,
in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Oct. 10, 2021
"Ottawa last week formally invoked the dispute-resolution article of a 1977 treaty governing transit pipelines between the two nations. Yet Ms. Whitmer is acting like she's her own sovereign nation. If Ms. Whitmer prevails, she’ll disrupt a major energy supply chain that moves more than half a million barrels of oil and natural gas liquids a day throughout the Great Lakes region. If the pipeline shuts down, “up to 400,000 barrels per day of oil originating from western Canada (much of it destined for the United States)” would be stranded, the Canadian government said."
—Wall Street Journal editorial
Oct. 9, 2021
"Pragmatism should now rule. The Biden administration, having already offended Canada by stopping construction of the Keystone XL pipeline, is not likely to add insult to that injury by allowing Whitmer to cut off Line 5. Not at a time when OPEC is restricting oil and tighter supplies are driving up costs for American consumers. . . . Whitmer is on the wrong the side of the Line 5 issue. She should stand down while the two nations work out their obligations and expectations under the treaty."
—Detroit News editorial
Sept. 16, 2021
"The attorney general is trying to shut off that (Line 5) spigot, and every single one of us is caught in the crosshairs . . . Instead of focusing on consumer protection, she’s politicized the office, targeted regular Michigan families for simply trying to stay in business, and is waging a bizarre and potentially disastrous war that could drive up fuel costs across the state."
—Greg McNeilly, Michigan Freedom Fund chairman,
in the Detroit News
July 14, 2021
"Line 5 safely delivers the fuel that Michigan counts on every day. It powers tens of thousands of jobs, including the convenience stores and gas stations that motorists and families rely on across Grand Traverse County. More than 15,000 of our family members and neighbors work at these jobs every day statewide to put food on the table and keep our neighborhoods humming."
—Mark Griffin, President, Michigan Petroleum Association
and Michigan Association of Convenience Stores
June 16, 2021
"Thousands of good-paying Toledo jobs, as well as countless suppliers, bars and restaurants that benefit from the Toledo Refining Company’s presence in Toledo, will be choked off should (Line 5) be shut down. This is the last thing our local economy needs, especially as the economic recovery from COVID-19 continues."
—Ohio State Rep. D.J. Swearington
and Ohio State Sen. Rob McColley
June 16, 2021
"Just because you shut down a pipeline, you don’t shut down the need to heat your home in the winter, or keep it cool in the summer . . . . Misinformed claims that shutting down Line 5 won’t affect jobs are reckless and, to be frank, irresponsible and out of touch with workers who, by the way, help pay the salary of many of the Line 5’s critics."
—Sean Strickland, executive director
of Canada's Building Trades Unions
May 17, 2021
"There is a lot at stake, not just for my hometown of Toledo, Ohio, but the region, the nation, our diplomatic relationships with Canada, our trading partner. There's a lot at stake here, and it is bad for the country if they shut this line down."
—Scott Hayes, of the Toledo
Refining Company, on FOX News
May 17, 2021
"After hackers halted operations on the Colonial Pipeline, which serves 45% of the region’s fuel needs, prices skyrocketed, vehicles lined for blocks, and more than 1,000 gas stations ran dry. State and federal governments waived safety and environmental rules for fuel delivery by truck, rail and ship, all of which produce more emissions than pipelines. Even as the U.S. works to recover the Colonial, Michigan threatens a similar disruption . . . Millions depend on the energy pipelines deliver for their homes, jobs and businesses. Shutting down Line 5 would inflict significant hurt, and it won’t deliver a cleaner energy future."
—David Jacobson, former U.S. ambassador to Canada,
and Gary Doer, former Canadian ambassador to the U.S.
May 15, 2021
"Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's crusade to force Enbridge Energy to shut down its Line 5 pipeline is courting both economic and political disaster. . . . In recent months, we have seen multiple examples of what happens when critical infrastructure suddenly shuts down. Whitmer is doggedly trying to make that happen with a pipeline that has never seen an oil spill."
—Crain's Detroit Business
April 2, 2021
"From long-term shutdowns to mandated capacity limits, small businesses have faced more setbacks than anyone could have imagined. Now that we can faintly see the light at the end of the tunnel, it’s time to give small businesses hope, and ensure they have the resources they need to succeed. That’s why keeping Line 5 open is so important."
—Charles Owens, Michigan director
for the National Federation of Independent Business
March 22, 2021
"The closure of Line 5 will significantly impact operations at BPF Energy's Toledo Refining Co. plant and the BP-Husky Toledo Refinery, and could potentially close a refinery, leaving hundreds of hard-working Ohioans unemployed."
—An Ohio House of Representatives' resolution
to keep Line 5 open in Michigan
Feb. 18, 2021
"Critical energy supplies. Jobs. Tax revenue. Environmental benefits. Safety. Line 5 delivers all of that for Michigan and only stands to improve."
—Michigan State Sen.
Curt VanderWall
Jan. 28, 2020
"From the Michigan Chamber of Commerce to the Lake Superior Community Partnership to trade unions, support for the Great Lakes tunnel project is widespread. Public and private support for infrastructure projects like Line 5 ensures we protect our clean water resources and create a more vibrant economy — and more jobs — for the entire region. That’s good for all Michigan residents."
—Michael DiPonio, President
of Livonia, MI-based Jay Dee Contractors
Dec. 8, 2020
"The devastating consequences of shutting down Line 5 cannot be overstated. It would put at risk and possibly cause the shutdown of refineries served by Line 5 in Ohio and elsewhere, resulting in the loss of over $5.4 billion in annual economic output and tens of thousands of jobs. Commerce in the region would be threatened since the fuel supply to Detroit Metro Airport, which receives at least 50 percent of its fuel supplies from refineries served by Line 5, would be disrupted."
—Ohio Congressman Bob Latta and nine fellow Congressmen
from Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio and Oklahoma, in a letter to PHMSA
Dec. 5, 2020
"Political posturing aside, the renewal of the nearly 70-year-old permit for Line 5 should have been a slam dunk. The pipeline, which runs beneath Lake Michigan, transporting fuel from Wisconsin to Ontario, has been a model of safety during its lifetime. Just as important, it generates more than $5 billion in economic activity annually in southeast Michigan and Ohio, supplies more than half the state’s demand for propane, and has helped meet a growing appetite in the region for light crude oil."
—Greg Markkanen, a Republican member,
of the Michigan House of Representatives
Dec. 4, 2020
"What is shocking is why the governor would choose now to deliberately create an unnecessary energy crisis in the height of the growing pandemic and economic crisis. Line 5’s closure will jeopardize the nearly 47,000 Michigan jobs currently connected to Michigan’s small energy producers, but the economic hardship will reach much deeper than just our companies. Line 5 is part of an international energy delivery system that serves many needs throughout the Great Lakes Region. Its closure will affect jobs throughout Michigan, the region and far beyond the energy sector."
—Brian Dorr and Jason Geer, chairman and president, respectively,
of the Michigan Oil and Gas Association
Nov. 19, 2020
"Line 5 in its current form could disappear from the lakes as soon as 2024 if Whitmer would honor the deal the state made with Enbridge build the tunnel. Continuing to fight this sensible solution prolongs the timeframe and increases the risk to the Great Lakes."
—Detroit News editorial
Nov. 18, 2020
"We have to quit obstructing these hard workers—I have full faith that Enbridge will keep the line safe while moving forward with a modernized tunnel buried beneath the earth’s surface."
—Michigan State Rep. Michele Hoitenga
Nov. 17, 2020
"The Governor’s actions to shut down Line 5 will trigger a propane shortage in the Upper Peninsula; 300,000 Michiganders live in the Upper Peninsula, and depend on propane to heat their homes. . . . This is a direct effort to cancel building the Great Lakes Tunnel. Hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of construction jobs, mostly union construction jobs, will be lost. Potentially thousands and thousands of jobs in Michigan’s energy industry will be lost. And that’s without considering . . . that there is no alternative to Line 5.
"The question for the Governor and Dana Nessel today is, in addition to a propane shortage for UPers, what option are you in favor of? Oil barges on the Great Lakes? Miles and miles and miles of trains pulling tanker cars . . . that don’t exist in that quantity today? Or are they in favor of an endless convoy of tanker trucks over the Mackinac Bridge? A truly stunning development."
—Rich Studley, Michigan Chamber of Commerce president
and CEO, on the Steve Gruber Show
Oct. 4, 2020
"The time for fighting about the Tunnel project needs to be over. We should embrace significant infrastructure investments that don’t cost taxpayers a dime. The Great Lakes Tunnel is what is best for Michigan families, workers and our economic future. That’s why Republicans and Democrats support it. It’s why business groups like SBAM stand arm in arm with labor unions to back construction."
—Brian Calley, former Michigan Lt. Governor
and current president, Small Business Association of Michigan
Sept. 8, 2020
"Without energy from Line 5, the energy that Michigan residents and businesses rely on would be much more difficult to obtain and much more costly, as well. Cutting off this essential energy supply would be devastating to Michigan’s economy, and that includes Michigan’s gas stations and convenience stores. We don’t do ourselves any favors if we aren’t honest about the challenges the state will face without the Great Lakes Tunnel."
—Mark Griffin, President of Michigan Petroleum Association
and Michigan Association of Convenience Stores
Aug. 29, 2020
"The tunnel would house a replacement segment of Line 5 deep below the lakebed in the Straits. This would increase safe operation of Line 5 and virtually eliminate risk of a spill. It also would enable Line 5 to continue to provide us the energy and fuel on which we rely every day. There is only one solution: Build the Great Lakes Tunnel."
—Geno Alessandrini, business manager,
Laborers' Local 1329, Iron Mountain, MI
Aug. 27, 2020
"Taking Line 5 and burying it far below the lakebed will ensure that this essential energy source (propane) is safe to use for the foreseeable future. We must utilize long-term solutions to protect Line 5 because it meets 55 percent of our state’s propane needs. If we were to face a Line 5 closure, it would be impossible to find a good alternative, especially not an affordable one. Our economy would be devastated, and families would be left scrambling. That is the last thing anyone wants."
—Grand Blanc's David Lowe, former propane company owner
and current consultant to Michigan's propane industry
July 21, 2020
"If someone is truly an environmentalist, how can they look at me and tell me: “Joe, 2,000 trucks a day—the amount it would take to transport the liquid in the pipeline now—is more environmentally friendly than a pipeline buried 100 feet below the lake bed, in bed rock.” How can that be safer? Not to mention, we don’t have enough truck drivers to do that, even if we wanted."
—Michigan State Rep. Joe Bellino
July 13, 2020
"Despite the many safety measures built into the pipeline and assurance it will continue to be closely monitored, environmental extremists like Attorney General Dana Nessel and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer continue to spread misinformation about the project. Fact: Shutting down Line 5 would require an additional 2,000 trucks a day on Michigan roads to transport the liquid in the pipeline now. This would be much more dangerous for our environment, yet where is the uproar from those who claim to protect the environment?"
—Second-term Michigan State Rep. Daire Rendon, who represents
Missaukee, Crawford, Kalkaska, Roscommon and Ogemaw counties
July 6, 2020
"The courts have said—repeatedly—that the Tunnel project can move forward. Republicans and Democrats across the state back it. Michigan communities are counting on it. Workers, families, and conservationists are asking for it. Now it’s time to take the next step, and to end the stall tactics. Our communities agree. Building the Great Lakes Tunnel just makes sense."
—Amy Clickner, CEO, Lake Superior Community Partnership
and Jim Holcomb, senior executive VP, Michigan Chamber of Commerce
June 29, 2020
"Michigan faces a difficult road back from the economic devastation caused by the extended COVID-19 shutdowns. It should not make the task more challenging by driving up the cost of energy. That’s bound to happen if Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Attorney General Dana Nessel prevail in keeping the Line 5 petroleum pipeline out of service."
—Detroit News editorial
March 11, 2020
"Michigan is one of the largest consumers of propane used for residential winter heating in the country, especially in the Upper Peninsula, and the closure of Line 5 would have an immediate and crippling effect on the economy as prices skyrocket. Small business would be among the first to suffer the consequences of such a short-sighted action."
—Charles Owens, Michigan director of the
National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB)
Feb. 16, 2020
“It’s a project that means safer lakes, reliable energy, and more high-wage jobs. . . . The time for action is now. Let’s support Michigan workers, stand with labor, end the stall tactics, and build the Great Lakes tunnel.”
—Geno Alessandrini, business manager, Michigan Laborers District Council
and Michael Aaron, business manager, Laborers Local 1191
Jan. 10, 2020
“It is time to work collaboratively and complete this critical project. Democrats and Republicans support the Great Lakes Tunnel. Business and labor does, too. And because it impacts the entire state of Michigan, Yoopers support it as do Detroiters. The Great Lakes Tunnel plan makes sense for Michigan.”
—Amy Clickner, CEO of the Lake Superior Community Partnership
Nov. 4, 2019
“Michigan should honor the law it passed. If Whitmer and Nessel believe the law requires revising, the appropriate response is to return to the Legislature and negotiate. But unilaterally rejecting enacted legislation because a new governor and attorney general oppose it sends a terrible message that this is a state governed by political whim rather than the rule of law.”
—Radio host and Detroit News columnist Nolan Finley
Oct. 23, 2019
“Efforts by some to shut down the pipeline have thrown our energy and economic security into doubt . . . it is not reasonable to cut off a significant part of our energy supply and stop what could be one of Michigan’s most significant infrastructure projects since the Mackinac Bridge—a project that would actually protect our environment while also protecting family budgets and our economy.”
—Mike Cox, Michigan's Attorney General from 2003 through 2011
Oct. 22, 2019
“Without the tunnel project, our local communities would also lose tens of millions in local tax revenue. The pipeline it will house generates property taxes, sales and use taxes, and income taxes. That means investment we rely on for our local schools, our local roads, and our local services. In fact, in many communities, it’s the single largest taxpayer.”
—Joe Bonovetz, a Gogebic County commissioner, and Grand Traverse County Commission chairman Rob Hentschel
Sept. 18, 2019
“To move this quantity of crude over this distance by rail or truck would be so costly, so detrimental to the environment, damaging to our infrastructure, and so dangerous, that a pipeline is the only logical solution. Proposing that it be shut down is reckless and irresponsible. Dana Nessel has either been totally inept at gathering and evaluating the facts, or she has purposely misrepresented the facts, clearly demonstrating that she is not qualified to be the Attorney General.”
—Dan Harrington, owner of U.P. Propane in Iron Mountain, MI
Sept. 3, 2019
“If Nessel fairly communicated both sides of the issue, she would note that Line 5 has been in use since 1953 without a leak into the Great Lakes. She would also point out that a new, already planned utility tunnel would house Line 5, making an already safe pipeline even safer . . . It seems inexplicable why the Whitmer administration doesn’t seek to resume talks with Enbridge officials, and allow the tunnel project to proceed.”
—Chris Ventura, executive director, Consumer Energy Alliance
Aug. 30, 2019
“Michigan is a hard-working state. We take pride in doing tough, blue-collar jobs. If Enbridge shuts down, the jobs of pipeline operators, steel workers, manufacturers, and many others will be threatened. With less tax revenue, the state will have to fill a $40 million hole in their already stretched budget.”
—Tom Paulsen, Sterling Heights business owner and lifelong Michigan resident
Aug. 26, 2019
“Forcing the closure of the pipeline in two years — instead of allowing Enbridge to relocate it to the tunnel in five years — will cost the region thousands of high-paying, blue-collar jobs, raise fuel prices and needlessly risk oil and gas spills along railroads and highways. These are the consequences of political gamesmanship gone too far.”
—Daniel J. Dew (Buckeye Institute) and Jason Hayes (Mackinac Center for Public Policy)
Aug. 21, 2019
“Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and some in the environmental community appear to be operating in a sort of fantasy world—where facts and real-life experiences can be discounted—because they are blinded by their own political motivations when it comes to discussing the future of Line 5. Theirs is a world where all relevant facts are ignored or derided as political cover-ups. Common truths—like the need for energy, the critical nature of jobs and economics, security of the current lines, and that building the energy corridor tunnel (at no cost to taxpayers) is the fastest path to removing the current lines from the straits—are simply dismissed.”
—Michigan Sen. Ed McBroom (R-Vulcan),
Rep. Beau LaFave (R-Iron Mountain) and Rep. Greg Markkanen (R-Hancock)
Aug. 20, 2019
“We have the best engineers anywhere in the world. We have the best tradespeople, the laborers, the construction workers, the equipment operators. We can design it; we can formulate it; we can build it. We can produce the safest tunnel anywhere in the world. We can do it here in Michigan.”
—Michigan Sen. Wayne Schmidt (R-Traverse City)
Aug. 14, 2019
“Prematurely decommissioning a project like Line 5 and halting investments in critical energy transmission infrastructure would immediately disrupt the energy supply for Michigan residents, businesses and U.S. refineries. Jobs will be lost.”
—Steve Bucci, The Heritage Foundation
Aug. 3, 2019
“The ongoing debate over upgrading Michigan’s Line 5 pipeline under the Straits of Mackinac is a telling example of political dysfunction threatening our nation’s infrastructure . . . lawsuits aimed at stopping new infrastructure are not helpful, and . . . will actually undermine environmental safety in the long run, a key fact we need to keep in mind when evaluating our transportation and infrastructure industries.”
—Brigham McCown, former COO, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA)
July 18, 2019
“If Line 5 was eliminated we’d probably see increased fuel costs for those locations as well. So we want to make sure that we’re being sound stewards of the environment, and we also want to make sure we protect the economic viability of the Upper Peninsula for everyone who lives here.”
—Nate Heffron, City Manager, Negaunee, MI
July 17, 2019
“If the politicians stop pandering to environmental extremists and give the tunnel the go-ahead, Michigan in a few short years will have protected both its lakes and its energy supplies.”
—Nolan Finley, Detroit News columnist
June 27, 2019
“Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel’s lawsuit Thursday to shut down an aging, underwater oil pipeline, as well as halt a $500-million replacement tunnel project, could result in huge economic harm to Michigan and Toledo area refineries and perhaps to the general public.”
—Editorial board, Toledo Blade
