The Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa has filed a lawsuit against the US Army Corps of Engineers for unlawfully granting Canadian company Enbridge a permit for the construction of a new 41-mile section of its Line 5 oil pipeline.
Please see the full press release here
The legal document can be accessed here
“For more than a decade, we have had to endure the unlawful trespass of a dangerous oil pipeline on our lands and waters,” said Bad River Band Chairwoman Elizabeth Arbuckle. “The reroute only makes matters worse. Enbridge’s history is full of accidents and oil spills. If that happens here, our Tribe and other communities in the Northwoods will suffer unacceptable consequences. From the Bad River to Lake Superior, our waters are the lifeblood of our Reservation. They have fed and nurtured our Tribe for hundreds of years. We will do everything in our power to protect them.”
In a separate legal challenge, the Band is contesting permits that the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources granted Enbridge last year. Although construction on the reroute is legally barred until an administrative law judge rules on that challenge, community members have already documented Enbridge violations, including logging, road work and the construction of a man camp. Community monitoring of Enbridge construction activities is ongoing, please support this effort and keep checking this website for reports received from folks on the ground.