A controversial project to update Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline moved one step closer to completion with this filing. If approved, the company could begin construction on its Great Lakes Tunnel Project in 2021, with a target operational date of 2024. The tunnel would house Enbridge’s new Line 5 oil pipeline, replacing a 67-year-old pipeline beneath the Straits of Mackinac, a narrow waterway between Michigan’s Upper and Lower Peninsulas. Line 5 transports up to 540,000 barrels a day of natural gas and crude oil from Canada. Environmental advocates Indigenous rights groups, and Michigan’s own governor have criticized the replacement project, according to The Guardian. The judge in a related court case ruled last year that construction could continue while the case is in progress, the Detroit News reported. Status: Permit application submitted April 8, 2020.
