The U.S. Supreme Court is set to determine the appropriate jurisdiction for a significant legal case involving Michigan’s efforts to shut down a section of an aging pipeline under the Great Lakes. The review will focus on whether the lawsuit initiated by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel should proceed in state court.
In 2019, Nessel filed a lawsuit in state court aiming to invalidate the easement that permits Enbridge to operate a 4.5-mile stretch of the pipeline beneath the Straits of Mackinac, which connect Lake Michigan to Lake Huron. A year later, a temporary shutdown of the pipeline was ordered by Ingham County Judge James Jamo. However, operations resumed after Enbridge complied with certain safety conditions.
Enbridge subsequently shifted the case to federal court in 2021, citing its impact on U.S.-Canadian trade. This move was overturned by a panel from the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2024, which decided that Enbridge failed to meet the 30-day deadline for changing jurisdictions. The panel returned the case to Judge Jamo.
The Supreme Court did not provide an explanation for its decision to review the case. Enbridge expressed optimism about the court’s review, pointing out that there are exceptions to the 30-day jurisdictional deadline.
Kimberly Bush, spokesperson for Nessel, emphasized that the lawsuit should be heard in Michigan, noting the public trust doctrine that states natural resources are public property. The focus of the case, Line 5, has been transporting crude oil and natural gas between Superior, Wisconsin, and Sarnia, Ontario since 1953. Concerns have been mounting since 2017 regarding potential environmental risks, especially after a 2018 incident where a boat anchor damaged the pipeline.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources, under Governor Gretchen Whitmer, revoked the easement for Line 5 in 2020, leading Enbridge to file another federal lawsuit challenging this action. The company is working on obtaining permits to encase the pipeline section in a protective tunnel, a process that has already received approval from the Michigan Public Service Commission in 2023 but still requires permissions from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Michigan’s Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy.
Line 5 is also at the heart of legal battles in Wisconsin. A federal judge in Madison mandated the closure of part of the pipeline crossing the Bad River Band of Lake Superior’s reservation within three years. Enbridge is appealing this decision and has proposed rerouting the pipeline to avoid the reservation.
