Public commenters urge Line 5 decommissioning and raise safety, cultural and environmental concerns

Summary

During the public comment period at the Oct. 17 Mackinac Straits Corridor Authority meeting, multiple speakers urged decommissioning of Line 5 and raised concerns including worst-case spill scenarios, anchor strikes, methane and geologic risk (breccia/brescia), treaty and tribal rights, cultural impacts, and social concerns such as man camps; one

Several members of the public addressed the Mackinac Straits Corridor Authority Oct. 17, urging shutdown or decommissioning of Line 5 and raising safety, environmental and cultural concerns.

Patrick Egan, who identified himself as a resident and long-time attendee, said the authority's responsibility is to "get the project done safely and productively" and urged that quality-assurance work not be sidelined. Egan criticized the lack of public-facing quality-assurance review of recent specification changes and said he wanted the authority and Delve Underground to ensure rigorous QA oversight.

A tribal speaker who identified his Christian name as John Paul spoke for the water and said the proposal violated tribal rights and treaties, called the project a "scheme and a scam," and urged decommissioning and removal of Line 5. He said continuing project…

Public commenters urge Line 5 decommissioning and raise safety, cultural and environmental concerns

Summary

Subscribe to keep reading