The Metro: Line 5 tunnel debate intensifies in Lansing

By: Robyn Vincent

27 August 2025 at 01:32

The debate over a new oil tunnel for Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline landed at Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s doorstep this week.

On Tuesday, tribal members and environmental advocates delivered letters and handwritten comments to the George W. Romney Building in Lansing. The notes urged Whitmer and EGLE Director Phil Roos to reject the proposal beneath the environmentally sensitive Straits of Mackinac.

This followed a virtual briefing that activists held with EGLE staff that was punctuated by a display of thousands of folded paper fish, a nod to the Great Lakes’ fragile ecosystem.

Enbridge Energy says a concrete-lined tunnel deep beneath the lakebed would minimize spill risks and ensure energy reliability.

“Enbridge is working with state and federal agencies to study and develop plans that will minimize and mitigate impacts to the natural environment, natural resources, cultural heritage and community priorities,” wrote Enbridge’s Ryan Duffy in a recent statement emailed to WDET.

Duffy said Enbridge “will build the Great Lakes Tunnel safely, in conformity with thorough safety and environmental reviews by permitting agencies.”

Opponents say the plan threatens wetlands, locks Michigan into fossil fuel reliance for decades, increases carbon emissions, and infringes on tribal treaty-protected waters.

Sean McBrearty of Oil and Water Don’t Mix joined Robyn Vincent on The Metro to discuss the coalition’s specific request and the evidence behind its concerns.

Share your thoughts on Line 5

EGLE’s public comment period for the permits tied to wetlands and bottomlands closes this Friday, August 29. Here’s how to add your voice:

Submit comments online via EGLE’s MiEnviro Portal – search application HQ3‑8BYB‑N9DT1.
Email comments to: EGLE‑Enbridge‑Public‑Comments@Michigan.gov

Editor’s Note: Enbridge is a financial supporter of WDET. Our newsroom observes a clear boundary between funders and editorial content, and we do not serve the agendas of those who support us.

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