State approves work on oil pipeline under Mackinac Straits

Despite recent accidents and warnings from environmental groups and a local lawmaker, the Michigan Dept. of Natural Resources and Environment has given the OK for underwater oil pipeline work by Enbridge Energy Partners at the Straits of Mackinac.

Enbridge Energy Partners, still busy cleaning up oil pipeline spills in Marshall, Michigan and Romeoville, Ill., has come under intense scrutiny for its pipeline maintenance procedures.

This week the company plans to begin work on the section of pipeline that crosses one of the state’s most sensitive waterways.

On Friday the company began an inspection of the portion of its line 5 that crosses between Michigan’s Upper and Lower Peninsulas along the lake bed at the Straits of Mackinac.

The visual inspection, carried out by remotely operated vehicles on the lake floor, is intended to identify places where the 57 year old pipeline needs support, Enbridge spokesman Larry Springer said.

Springer said that the company will look for signs of metal loss on the pipeline, identify areas of the lakebed that may have been scoured out by the heavy currents at the straits, and build supports to keep the pipeline from flexing.

Though Michigan’s oil pipelines are regulated by federal authorities– which only require that Enbridge check its underwater pipeline once every five years — work on submerged land requires a permit from state environmental authorities.

In the wake of recent accidents and revelations about extensive pipeline maintenance problems at other sites in Michigan, a coalition of environmental groups and state Rep. Gary McDowell — the Democrat candidate for Congress in the Dist. 1 — asked the state to carefully examine Enbridge’s proposal before granting a permit for work.

In official comments on Enbridge’s permit application the environmental groups warned that work around pipelines can be dangerous, and noted that according to PHMSA excavation damage is the leading cause of serious pipeline incidents.

The groups urged the state to find out what problems Enbridge has identified on the line.

MDNRE must inquire as to what risk assessments and/or safety inspections Enbridge and the PHMSA have conducted on the Lakehead pipeline system and scrutinize the results, particularly anomalies found in the proposed project area, prior to making a determination on this permit request. MDNRE must also inquire as to what other problems or concerns were detected along this section of the pipeline in Enbridge’s pipeline integrity management program. Finally, MDNRE should take action to ensure that any anomalies in the pipeline identified as potential risks to the watershed are addressed as part of the proposed project and subsequent permit.

The groups also warned that pipeline support structures are known to be areas where corrosion can become a problem that threatens the structural integrity of a pipe. They urged state regulators to ask for details of the supports that Enbridge plans to build.

The environmental groups and McDowell also asked that the state require Enbridge to detail their emergency response plans and flush the pipeline of oil before beginning work on it.

On Sept. 15 DNRE said that it could take extra time to request and consider additional information related to Enbridge’s proposal. However DNRE chose not to take up these issues, according to MNDRE spokeswoman Mary Dettloff, and approved the permit on Sept. 17 without requesting any additional information from the company.

The company insists that its maintenance operation is safe.

Enbridge’s line 5 is 30 inches in diameter as it approaches the Straits, but is split into two 20 inch pipes made of 3/4 inch steel as it crosses the Straits.

Springer said that he sees no records of any sections of the pipe having been replaced during the 57 years the pipeline has been in place.

Springer said that the pipeline will not be emptied of materials during the inspections and maintenance activities. Instead, he said, the pipeline has been filled with natural gas liquids which are the most buoyant of the materials that the company transports through the pipeline. Clearing the pipeline of all products during the maintenance operation would be unsafe, he said, because air would make the pipeline so buoyant that it could flex and risk damage.

Natural gas liquids include propane, butane, pentane, hexane and heptane — all of which are flammable, explosive and hazardous if spilled.

Springer said that the company has technicians available in in Mackinaw City, Indian River and Manistique, plus larger crews in Escanaba and Bay City in case of emergency.

A copy of Enbridge’s emergency response plans obtained by Michigan Messenger show that Garner Environmental would be the key contractor in the event of an accident.

Garner has come under scrutiny for hiring a company that bused undocumented workers to Marshall Michigan for oil spill cleanup work that involved 100 hour long work weeks and unsafe conditions.