Line 3: A Tragedy for Communities and our Climate
On October 1st, 2021, bitumen oil mined from the tar sands of Alberta began flowing through Enbridge’s new Line 3 pipeline replacement, much to the dismay of climate activists and local indigenous communities. (Arvin)
In 2014, Enbridge cited corroded pipes and increased oil demand as reasons to reroute Line 3, create a new pipeline corridor, and double the amount of oil transported to nearly 1 million barrels per day. (Arvin) For the most part, the new Line 3 follows the same route as the old pipeline, running from Edmonton, Alberta to Superior, Wisconsin, except for a 330 mile section in Minnesota that follows an entirely different route. (Hughlett, Johnson) Enbridge, a multinational pipeline company based in Calgary, argued that the new pipeline would not only be safer than the old one, but would create 4200 jobs in Minnesota alone. The promise of jobs has led to strong labor union support for the Line 3 replacement project, and construction of the pipeline began in December 2020. (Hughlett, Johnson)
Enbridge’s arguments, however, do not hold water upon closer inspection. The Minnesota section of the old Line 3 pipeline runs along a corridor in which there are five other oil pipelines, all run by Enbridge. On the new route, there are no other pipelines. (Hughlett, Johnson) Environmental activists warn that the Line 3 replacement will subject a whole new suite of lakes, rivers, and wetlands to possible oil spills. Their concern is not purely theoretical. Enbridge has a terrible track record when it comes to their ability to handle ecological crises. In 1991, the original Line 3 pipeline had a large spill, leaking 1.7 million gallons of crude oil into the Prairie River in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. In 2010, Enbridge had another spill on its Line 6B pipeline, dumping over a million gallons of crude oil into the Kalamazoo River in Michigan. (Arvin) Perhaps most damningly, Enbridge pierced an aquifer in the construction of its Line 3 replacement just this year, causing a groundwater leak of 24 million gallons and threatening nearby wetlands. While this incident happened in January, Enbridge did not disclose it, and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources did not find out about it until June. Enbridge was given a deadline of October 15th to stop the flow of groundwater from this aquifer, but as of October 27th, the leak continues unabated. (stopline3.org)
Considering Enbridge’s history, it is understandable why many local communities don’t trust assertions that the new pipeline is safe, despite the economic boon the company claims it is providing. Over the course of the pipeline’s construction, around 900 activists who refer to themselves as “water protectors” have been arrested for acts of civil disobedience along the new pipeline corridor, many having chained themselves to pipeline equipment. (Hughlett, Johnson) Though Enbridge asserts that it is not using local police as its private security force, the company has spent roughly two million dollars via the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission to reimburse police costs along the construction route. (Carleton) For activists on the left who see the police as a tool designed to protect capital over human life, it’s hard to think of a better example than the brutal treatment water protectors have suffered at the hands of police departments on Enbridge’s payroll.
The objections of anti-pipeline protestors go beyond fear of an oil spill on indigenous treaty land. Many scientists and climate activists fear that the Line 3 replacement, which will double the throughput of Canadian tar sands - a notoriously carbon intensive fuel - is a climate catastrophe in the making. One report estimated that the Line 3 extension will have roughly the climate impact of bringing 50 new coal plants online. (Arvin) While President Biden campaigned on prioritizing the implementation of climate-friendly policies, and cancelled the Keystone XL pipeline with an executive order in January 2021, he has shown no such willingness to take similar action when it comes to Line 3. During the second week of October, as tar sands continued to flow through the new pipeline, a group called Build Back Fossil Free launched a “People vs. Fossil Fuels” mobilization. Over the course of a week, more than 600 people associated with this campaign were arrested on Capitol Hill. (peoplevsfossilfuels.org)
Despite protest, however, there remain very few opportunities for anti-pipeline activists to revoke Enbridge’s right to operate the new Line 3. One such opportunity lies in a challenge to Enbridge’s permit rights currently under consideration in a US tribal court. In this case, manoomin, the Ojibwe word for wild rice, is listed as a primary plaintiff. The case centers on an 1855 treaty between the United States and the Ojibwe nation, which explicitly specifies the right of the Ojibwe people to gather, hunt, and fish on their land. The pipeline, asserts the case, threatens the water supply of the people living in the 1855 treaty territory, and thus infringes on their ability to gather wild rice on their land. (Surma) However, many legal experts believe the case is unlikely to succeed, given that there is no precedent for a victory in such a “natural rights” case, while there is extensive precedent for the violation of countless treaties made between the US government and American Indian nations.
Sources:
Arvin, Jariel. The Indigenous-led fight to stop the Line 3 oil pipeline expansion in Minnesota, explained www.vox.com/22333724/oil-pipeline-expansion-protest-minnesota-biden-climate-change
Carleton, Audrey. An Oil Company Paid Police $2 Million to Defend Its Pipeline From Protests https://www.vice.com/en/article/4avp3w/an-oil-company-paid-police-dollar2-million-to-defend-its-pipeline-from-protests
Hughlett, Mike. Johnson, Brooks. Controversial Line 3 done; oil set to flow Friday, Enbridge says www.startribune.com/controversial-line-3-substantially-done-oil-to-flow-oct-1-enbridge-says/600101928/
Surma, Katie. To Stop Line 3 Across Minnesota, an Indigenous Tribe Is Asserting the Legal Rights of Wild Rice https://insideclimatenews.org/news/22102021/line-3-rights-of-nature-minnesota-white-earth-nation/
www.stopline3.org/news/2021/10/18/kzyxq6je81n9bwp05xi7kngvdxl5kg