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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is proposing to shift authority to regulate coal ash landfills in Wisconsin from the federal government to state environmental regulators.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources sought approval in February of its program to oversee disposal of coal combustion residuals, or coal ash, from the state’s electric utilities. Wisconsin has six coal ash landfills that are owned by Dairyland Power Cooperative, Alliant Energy, Wisconsin Public Service and We Energies.

Coal ash is what’s left behind from burning coal at power plants to produce electricity. Metals or pollutants within that waste, including arsenic, lead and mercury, can contaminate groundwater without proper storage.

Anne Vogel, EPA’s regional administrator for its Chicago-based office, said the agency wants to eliminate duplicate regulation.

“It’s really about having to go to two different regulators and eliminating that barrier makes things more efficient, more cost effective for the management of these landfills in a protective way,” Vogel told WPR.

The state’s regulations must be at least as stringent as federal requirements, but they could be even more protective.

Wisconsin moved to streamline regulations under an update to rules for coal ash landfills in 2022, said Kate Strom Hiorns, director of DNR’s Waste Materials Management Program. Those changes incorporated 2015 regulations imposed by the Obama administration that addressed landfill design, groundwater monitoring and closure requirements.

“By submitting this and getting this program approval, it’s that recognition that our regulations are as protective as the federal regulations, and that the sites that are being regulated can be regulated for the most part solely under state regulators and inspections,” Strom Hiorns said.

Wisconsin utilities support a shift to one set of regulations for their coal ash landfills.

“Utilities in Wisconsin have been regulated by the state for many years; transferring this particular permitting authority from the federal to state government is a positive step for Wisconsin,” said Dairyland spokesperson Katie Thomson.

However, Cheryl Nenn with the environmental group Milwaukee Riverkeeper said she’s in favor of dual regulation.

“Given the changes in politics at the state level and the federal level, there’s some benefit to having that dual oversight,” Nenn said, highlighting the state’s adoption of federal regulations.

The Obama and Biden administrations strengthened coal ash regulations, including a 2024 rule that required oversight of inactive landfills. Under the Trump administration, the EPA has proposed rolling back and revising those requirements.

“They’d essentially remove or exempt a lot of these coal ash dump sites from regulation entirely, even though many of them are already showing evidence of groundwater contamination,” Nenn said.

Nenn said there has been groundwater contamination at the closed, unlined Cedar Sauk Ash Landfill in Ozaukee County that received coal ash from We Energies’ Port Washington power plant from 1969 to 1977.

The DNR has ordered the utility to address contamination and conduct sampling for boron and sulfate, which found levels of boron exceeded groundwater standards. We Energies has said the utility has seen “declining trends” for both in monitoring wells, and sampling indicates no effects to nearby private wells. 

Strom Hiorns said the state requires utilities to conduct groundwater sampling and has long monitored groundwater at closed coal ash landfills, which wouldn’t change under the federal proposal.

She said other landfills owned by We Energies and Alliant Energy have also exceeded preventive action limits or enforcement standards for groundwater. Those detections are tied to older parts of those sites or naturally occurring substances, such as boron or molybdenum.

Brendan Conway, a spokesperson for WPS and We Energies, said their landfills are actively monitored for groundwater impacts and managed in line with state and federal requirements. An Alliant spokesperson said it’s committed to full compliance.

Under the EPA’s proposal, Wisconsin would assume authority only for coal ash landfills. The EPA would continue to oversee coal ash ponds. The EPA is currently accepting public comments on its proposal to shift regulation to Wisconsin’s program. A virtual public hearing will be held Nov. 9.

This story was originally published by WPR.

EPA proposes shifting oversight of coal ash landfills in Wisconsin to state regulators 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.

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Enbridge said an early morning fire destroyed a drill rig and support equipment on a $1 billion project to reroute its Line 5 oil and gas pipeline in northern Wisconsin.

In a statement, Enbridge spokesperson Juli Kellner called the fire that damaged a horizontal directional drill rig and related equipment an act of vandalism. She said there was also graffiti found at the site. No details were provided on where the fire took place, but Kellner said no injuries were reported.

Iron County Sheriff Paul Samardich confirmed the blaze occurred in Ashland County. The Ashland County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to requests for additional details on the fire.

The incident follows two other fires targeting Enbridge that occurred last month, including a blaze in Ashland County that destroyed a drill rig on the Line 5 reroute.

“This is the second major vandalism involving construction equipment on the project,” Kellner said. “These incidents put the local community, landowners, first responders and our workers at risk and result in environmental impacts.”

The FBI and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, or ATF, are investigating the cause of the two previous fires that occurred in the town of Gingles and the city of Superior. Representatives of the FBI and ATF did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Kellner said Enbridge supports people’s rights to express their views “legally and peacefully.”

“Acts that damage property and put people or the environment at risk are neither legal nor peaceful,” Kellner said. “We take these incidents very seriously and will cooperate fully with authorities as they investigate and seek to hold those responsible accountable.”

Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline carries up to 23 million gallons of oil and natural gas liquids daily from Superior to Sarnia, Ontario, serving 10 refineries and propane facilities in the Great Lakes region.

The fires come after an Aug. 25 gas leak on Line 5 in the town of Saxon released more than 1.3 million gallons of natural gas liquids into the atmosphere. Preliminary findings suggest a subcontractor’s truck was in neutral when it rolled into an open construction trench, striking the pipeline. No one was injured in the incident, and response to the spill is still ongoing.

Following the leak, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources asked Enbridge to halt work on a temporary bypass around the site of the leak, saying the company lacked necessary approvals.

On Sept. 28, Enbridge also reported a release of groundwater at a site where crews were directly installing pipe underneath the Marengo River. It was initially reported as an aquifer breach, and the DNR has since said it’s still investigating the source of the release and determining any negative effects to groundwater.

This story was originally published by WPR.

Enbridge says another fire destroys drill rig on Line 5 project in northern Wisconsin 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.

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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.