On Tuesday, Enbridge Inc. briefly closed its Line 5 oil pipeline as protesters obstructed the pipeline’s activity in Michigan.
According to environmental campaigner Resist Line 3 Media Collective, a protester had turned a safety valve on the pipeline which caused the pipeline to stop the flow of oil.
Enbridge has stated that it would seek the prosecution of all those involved in Tuesday’s protest on account of unlawful trespassing and any attempt to tamper with energy infrastructure.
Line 5 is caught between Enbridge and the state of Michigan’s long-running environmental dispute. The line’s section running underwater in the Straits of Mackinac is feared to leak into the Great Lakes.
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer ordered the company to stop operating the pipeline by May because of the concern, but the company ignored the order. Now the line is under a legal battle.
