A billboard promoting Enbridge Inc. (Susan Demas | Michigan Advance)

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has decided that it will issue an individual wetland and waterway permit to the Canadian oil and gas company Enbridge, as the company seeks to relocate its Line 5 pipeline. Permits will also be issued to the company for stormwater site construction and pollution discharge elimination systems. The state agency’s decision is the latest development in the contested operation of Line 5 in Wisconsin. 

A DNR press release states that the wetland permit authorizes specific construction-related activities that may impact waterways and wetlands. The permit contains “more than 200 conditions to ensure compliance with state’s wetlands and waterways standards,” according to the DNR. The construction permits for stormwater sites also involve “specific plans for erosion control and water quality protection.”

Both the DNR and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must approve the permits before the project can proceed. Enbridge may need to also obtain other permits involving  groundwater, burning and incidental takes of species listed as threatened or endangered. Enbridge will also need to apply for a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permit to discharge dredge or fill material to waterways, which is required under the Clean Water Act. The DNR has issued a water quality certification “that serves as a determination that the project as proposed will meet State of Wisconsin water quality standards.” The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will also have to consider Wisconsin’s water quality certification as part of the permitting process. 

The announcement earned praise from the Wisconsin Building Trades Council, a union with  a membership of over 40,000. Emily Pritzkow, the union’s executive director, issued a statement saying the decision “reflects an intentional and balanced approach to addressing the state’s energy infrastructure needs while ensuring responsible environmental stewardship.” Calling the relocation of Line 5 “a win for Wisconsin workers, Wisconsin families, and the Wisconsin economy,” Pritzkow said the reroute “ensures operation with the highest safety standards by incorporating cutting-edge technology and construction practices.” Pritzkow added, “together, we can advance Wisconsin’s infrastructure needs while protecting the natural resources that make our state exceptional.”

Plans to reroute  Line 5 have been debated for years. In 2019, when the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa filed a federal lawsuit to remove the pipeline from the tribe’s reservation, a judge determined that the company had trespassed on the Bad River Band’s land, and ordered the pipeline to be removed within three years. Although the decision was a victory for the Bad River Band, the tribe argues that Line 5’s rerouted path still crosses the Bad River watershed, and thus still poses a threat to the tribe’s natural resources. 

In late August, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers received over 150,000 public comments opposing the continued operation of Line 5. Nearly a month later, the DNR released a final environmental impact statement on the reroute plan, which itself was a step necessary for Enbridge to receive the permits it needed to relocate the pipeline. 

Opponents to the decades-old crude oil pipeline were displeased by the DNR’s decision to issue permits to Enbridge. “I’m angry that the DNR has signed off on a half-baked plan that spells disaster for our homeland and our way of life,” said Bad River Band chairman Robert Blanchard in a statement. “We will continue sounding the alarm to prevent yet another Enbridge pipeline from endangering our watershed.”

Stefanie Tsosie, who is helping represent the Bad River Band as senior attorney at Earthjustice, said in a statement that the DNR “chose to serve Enbridge’s interests at the cost of the Bad River Band’s treaty rights and the state’s future clean water supply.” Tsosie added, “it’s sad that they are willing to gamble the region’s irreplaceable wetlands, the wild rice beds, and even Lake Superior to secure Enbridge’s cash flow.” 

Clean Wisconsin is considering legal challenges against the permit issuances. “Wisconsin law makes it clear that projects causing harm to our waters must meet a high bar to move forward,” said Clean Wisconsin attorney Evan Feinauer. “Given the enormous impacts that construction of this pipeline would cause, we are skeptical that the proposed project meets these legal standards.” Opponents of the pipeline also point out  that constructing the reroute would involve clearing trees, digging trenches, filling wetlands, and other activities which could disturb vulnerable ecosystems in northern Wisconsin. 

“We will evaluate what actions are needed to protect our state,” said Feinauer.