More than half of Wisconsin continues to struggle with drought, affecting more than a million residents.

The post Drought conditions in northern half of Wisconsin ease in some areas and expand in others appeared first on WPR.

Great Lakes ports are seeing declines in iron ore and steel shipments that are tied in part to the ongoing trade dispute between the U.S. and Canada.

The post Iron ore, steel shipments decline at Great Lakes ports due in part to Trump tariffs appeared first on WPR.

Wisconsin is among a coalition of 25 states, cities and counties suing the Trump administration for rolling back rules that limit heat-trapping greenhouse gas emissions from coal and gas-fired power plants.

The post Wisconsin among states suing Trump administration over rollback of power plant rules appeared first on WPR.

An ancient dugout canoe found in Pewaukee Lake in southeastern Wisconsin is estimated to be around 1,000 years old.

The post Diver discovers 1,000-year-old dugout canoe in southeastern Wisconsin lake appeared first on WPR.

U.S. Senate Democrats are urging the Trump administration to end delays on a key project to keep invasive carp out of the Great Lakes, warning the fish could gain a foothold and threaten the regional economy.

The post Great Lakes lawmakers say delays on invasive carp barrier threaten ecosystems, economy appeared first on WPR.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

A report filed with federal regulators estimates an August gas leak on Enbridge’s Line 5 oil and gas pipeline in northern Wisconsin will cost at least $15.1 million.

An accident report filed by Enbridge Energy Limited Partnership Thursday with the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration shows emergency response makes up the bulk of the costs, estimated at nearly $9.9 million.

The company estimated public and private property damage and repairs at about $5 million. Environmental remediation and lost product account for the remainder of the estimated expenses.

Enbridge has said the leak occurred after a subcontractor’s unoccupied flatbed truck rolled into an open excavation site for a Line 5 valve project in Iron County, striking and puncturing the pipeline.

“The affected pipeline section was immediately isolated, and Line 5 was shut down. No injuries occurred, and one nearby rural residence was evacuated as a precaution,” wrote Stacy Soine, Enbridge’s regulatory compliance advisor.

The company told regulators about 33,000 barrels, or more than 1.3 million gallons, of natural gas liquids escaped during the incident. Most has not been recovered because propane and butane vaporized upon release. The company recovered 165 barrels from the trench with a vacuum truck.

The report sheds no new light on how the truck rolled into the trench, saying the cause remains under investigation. But WPR obtained a corrective action order issued by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, or PHMSA, that states preliminary findings indicate “the tractor trailer was left temporarily unattended and placed in neutral transmission on a gradient slope prior to the failure.”

Enbridge told PHMSA it shut down the pipeline within three minutes of the leak. Line 5 resumed service Sept. 13. The report states that systems monitoring the pipeline were operating when the incident occurred. However, Soine wrote the company’s leak detection system did not trigger because of the immediate shutdown of Line 5.

The company reported the incident to the National Response Center an hour later at 11:02 a.m. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has said its spills hotline received notification at 11:15 a.m.

Enbridge said wildlife and water have not been affected.

“Community air monitoring is ongoing and has consistently shown safe air quality outside of the incident site. Monitoring wells continue to show no contamination, and soil and water monitoring remains ongoing,” Enbridge spokesperson Juli Kellner said.

The company plans to test, remove and properly dispose of soil from the excavation area.

A PHMSA spokesperson said the agency’s investigation remains ongoing. Texas-based Stress Engineering Services will conduct a mechanical and metallurgical analysis of the failed section of pipe. The agency’s accident investigation team will also inspect the truck. Inspectors are in the region overseeing construction of the Line 5 reroute.

“PHMSA may pursue additional enforcement action if its investigation identifies any violations of federal pipeline safety regulations or if additional corrective actions are necessary,” a PHMSA spokesperson said.

WPR previously reported that federal accident data shows the leak is the company’s and state’s largest oil and gas pipeline spill in Wisconsin in more than 50 years.

Environmental advocates and the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa have called on Gov. Tony Evers and the DNR to do more in response to the leak, including calling for a disaster declaration and revocation of permits for Enbridge’s Line 5 reroute. They pointed to Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s call for removal of Line 5 in the Straits of Mackinac, as well as a new regulatory review of Michigan permits issued for Enbridge’s tunnel project.

Neither the governor’s office nor the DNR has responded to those calls.

Line 5 carries up to 23 million gallons of crude oil and natural gas liquids daily from Superior to Sarnia, Ontario. The pipeline serves 10 refineries and propane facilities in the Midwest and Great Lakes region.

Enbridge built a temporary bypass to bring the pipeline back online amid objections from the Wisconsin DNR, which said the company lacked state approvals. Enbridge contends the construction complied with existing permits and an application for changes to its stormwater permit. A DNR spokesperson has said the agency continues to review options in response to the unpermitted construction.

Last week, fires damaged two company sites — an office building in Superior and drilling equipment at a Line 5 reroute site in Ashland County. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is leading a probe into both fires.

Roughly two-thirds of the $1 billion Line 5 reroute has been built. The project employs 700 workers. As many as a dozen other spills have occurred during the project, according to a court filing by the Bad River band.

In 2020, Enbridge proposed the reroute after the Bad River band sued the company in 2019 to shut down and remove the pipeline from tribal lands where easements had expired.

Three years ago, a federal judge found the company was trespassing and ordered Enbridge to pay roughly $5 million and shut down or reroute Line 5. The band and Enbridge appealed the decision. In August, a federal appeals panel ruled that Enbridge has been trespassing and must remove the pipeline from the Bad River reservation. However, the panel gave the company more time to complete the Line 5 reroute.

This story was originally published by WPR.

Enbridge estimates northern Wisconsin Line 5 gas leak will cost $15M is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is one step closer to securing a conservation easement on almost 1,800 acres in Langlade County that would benefit timber production and the Ice Age National Scenic Trail.

The post Wisconsin seeks to protect around 1.8K acres of forest in Langlade County appeared first on WPR.

This summer, Wisconsin opened its first certified forest bathing trail in Vilas County. Forest bathing is the practice of getting immersed in nature to improve well-being, and one group took in the trail's restorative effects last month.

The post Wisconsin’s first certified forest bathing trail helps residents reset and find balance appeared first on WPR.

A report filed with federal regulators estimates an August gas leak on Enbridge’s Line 5 oil and gas pipeline in northern Wisconsin will cost at least $15.1 million.

The post Enbridge estimates gas leak on Line 5 in northern Wisconsin will cost $15M appeared first on WPR.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources can now pursue special bag and size limits to aid struggling walleye populations.

The post Special bag and size limits approved to aid struggling walleye populations in Wisconsin appeared first on WPR.

Wisconsin wildlife regulators say they’ve received more than 1,600 reports of dead deer in southeastern Wisconsin that are tied to the state’s largest outbreak of Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease.

The post Wisconsin DNR updates hunters on deer diseases as reports in EHD outbreak grow appeared first on WPR.

U.S. and Canadian experts are urging government agencies to take swift action to address the threats posed by more frequent harmful algal blooms on Lake Superior.

The post Experts urge swift action to address harmful algal blooms on Lake Superior appeared first on WPR.

The head of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is asking Enbridge to halt work on a new stretch of its Line 5 pipeline around the site of a gas leak in Iron County, saying the company lacks state approvals.

The post Wisconsin DNR asks Enbridge to halt work on temporary bypass around site of gas leak appeared first on WPR.

In the race for Wisconsin’s governor, Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany and his Democratic opponent Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley share rare common ground on delisting wolves in Wisconsin.

The post Tiffany, Crowley aligned on removing federal protections for wolves in Wisconsin appeared first on WPR.

A gas leak that occurred last month on Enbridge’s Line 5 oil and gas pipeline is the largest oil and gas spill reported in Wisconsin in more than 50 years, according to a WPR review of federal data.

The post Federal data shows Enbridge leak is the largest reported oil and gas spill in Wisconsin appeared first on WPR.

Wild rice, or manoomin in the Ojibwe language, is culturally significant to northern Wisconsin tribes, and Wisconsin regulators are anticipating an increased wild rice harvest this year.

The post Wisconsin’s wild rice harvest is expected to be up this year appeared first on WPR.

Wisconsin wildlife regulators have now received almost 900 reports of dead deer in southeastern Wisconsin that are tied to an ongoing outbreak of Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease.

The post Reports of dead deer surge in southeastern Wisconsin amid disease outbreak appeared first on WPR.

Enbridge now hopes to restore service to its Line 5 oil and gas pipeline by Tuesday after a gas leak in northern Wisconsin last week.

The post Enbridge hopes to restore service to Line 5 by Tuesday after gas leak appeared first on WPR.

Residents who have been struggling with PFAS contamination in northeastern Wisconsin are one step closer to securing safe water after lawmakers voted to release $10 million from the state’s PFAS trust fund.

The post Marinette, Peshtigo residents closer to aid after lawmakers release $10M to address PFAS appeared first on WPR.

Enbridge says it’s temporarily halting work on rerouting its Line 5 oil and gas pipeline following a gas leak in Iron County on Tuesday.

The post Enbridge temporarily halts work on Line 5 reroute after 1.3M gallon gas leak appeared first on WPR.