FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 15, 2026
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. — In a pair of key permit decisions announced today by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) regarding Enbridge’s proposed pipeline tunnel through the Straits of Mackinac, the state has failed to carry out its duties under the Michigan Wetlands Protection Act (Part 303), the Great Lakes Submerged Lands Act (Part 325), and the Public Trust Doctrine to protect Michigan wetlands and submerged lands. It has also disregarded over 70,000 public comments EGLE received during the public comment period last summer in favor of a Canadian company and pipeline that ends in Sarnia, Ontario and primarily delivers crude oil to Canada.
“That these heartbreaking permit decisions were announced during a period of dangerously bad air quality due to climate change-related wildfires is sadly poetic,” said Liz Kirkwood, Flow Water Advocates executive director. “It’s a stark illustration that building this tunnel and further entrenching the burning of fossil fuels isn’t just wrong for the Straits and Michiganders, it’s wrong for the planet.”
Flow Water Advocates holds that under the Great Lakes Submerged Lands Act, the tunnel project cannot be lawfully permitted unless the state has found that adverse effects to the environment and public trust are minimal, and that there are no feasible and prudent alternatives to the applicant’s proposed activity (in this case, Enbridge’s proposal to bore a 4.5-mile tunnel through the Straits).
No such finding has been made, and feasible alternatives — including utilizing excess capacity elsewhere in pipeline and rail networks, as detailed in a pair of reports by energy supply chain analysts PLG Consulting (Likely Market Responses to a Potential Shutdown of Line 5 (2023), Prospective Line 5 Closure Boosts US Energy Dominance (2025)) — are available. The decisions are particularly egregious given the fact that feasible and prudent alternatives are also identified in the state’s own record.
And just last week, the CBC reported that Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith are backing a new “Northern Shield” oil pipeline that would stretch from Western Canada to Sarnia, bypassing the U.S. and the Great Lakes. Last fall, the Ontario government began a feasibility study for the project, which would bolster Canadian energy independence — and potentially render Enbridge’s Line 5 and proposed tunnel redundant.
In joint comments submitted to EGLE, Flow Water Advocates, the Sierra Club, and Surfrider Foundation wrote “Enbridge’s pursuit of the Line 5 tunnel runs in direct contradiction to the public interest in Michigan’s invaluable freshwater resources and the ecosystems they support; in the sacred cultural sites within and surrounding the Straits and the Tribal rights that are inextricably tied to them; in a healthy climate future and a resilient Michigan economy; and in the vested rights of all Michiganders to use and enjoy the State’s public trust resources free from the threat of substantial impairment.”
The permit approvals announced today are a blow to Michigan’s public trust resources, Tribal rights and interests, and Governor Whitmer’s own Healthy Climate Plan and commitment to carbon neutrality.
Enbridge cannot begin construction of this proposed tunnel under the Great Lakes until it has secured final approval for two other major permits, including the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit from EGLE, and the federal permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. A permit issued by the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) has been appealed to the Michigan Supreme Court by Flow Water Advocates (For Love of Water v. MPSC) and a coalition of tribal nations joined by the Environmental Law & Policy Center and Michigan Climate Action Network (Little Traverse Bay Bands v. MPSC). A decision is expected in late July.
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Flow Water Advocates is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Traverse City, Michigan. Our mission is to ensure the waters of the Great Lakes Basin are healthy, public, and protected for all. With a staff of legal and policy experts, strategic communicators, and community builders, Flow is a trusted resource for Great Lakes advocates. We help communities, businesses, agencies, and governments make informed policy decisions and protect public trust rights to water. Learn more at www.FlowWaterAdvocates.org.
