Environmental and Climate Change Impacts of the Line 5 Pipeline in Michigan

Presenters: Jessica Berger, MS (EJ); Bryan Castillo, MS (EPP); Sofia Da Silva, MS (EJ); Hans Leisman, MS (EPP); Kylee Nichols, MS (EPP); Erin Posas, MS (EJ); Bree Prehn, MS (EJ)

Advisor: Dr. Kyle Whyte

Location: Straits of Mackinac, Michigan, USA

Client: Anishinaabek Caucus

The construction of a new tunnel for an updated Line 5 pipeline and the continued operation of the significantly outdated current (Great Lakes Business Network, 2022) pipeline are an infringement against the human and treaty rights of the Anishinaabe people of the Great Lakes region (Anishinaabek Caucus of the Michigan Democratic Party, 2019). Furthermore, these destructive practices on the part of the Enbridge corporation pose a threat to the environmental health of the Great Lakes region (Coleman et al., 2018), a major obstacle in the transition to an emissions free future (Brooker, 2021), and a destabilizing factor for the financial security of the Michigan tourism and agricultural industry. Despite these realities, the popular conversation around this pipeline is largely shaped by the deep pockets of Enbridge (Lum & Lefebvre, 2021) and the financial interests allied with them.

Our research objective is to increase public understanding of the environmental and climate change impacts of the Enbridge Line 5 pipeline and the continued operation of Line 5 in Michigan. While the ultimate goal is to stop Line 5, within the 1.5 year time frame of our project, we are specifically focused on increasing public awareness and engagement, as well as making information about Line 5 and its environmental, ethical, and climate change implications openly available and easily accessible for everyone.

The problem our project addressed was that the people of the Great Lakes and Michigan policymakers lack accessible, digestible, and accurate information on the climate, environmental, and social impacts of Line 5 to form opinions and take action. Our methods included a literature review and interviews of tribal leaders, scholars and activists. The result was that our team collaborated with the Anishinaabek Caucus of the Democratic party to reshape this conversation through a video, executive summary, and academic paper that all uplift the perspective of the Anishinaabe people.