Five Questions On Line 5 For Michigan's Next Governor

LANSING, MI--Leading Democratic and Republican candidates for Michigan’s next governor are meeting Thursday, May 31 on Mackinac Island for a debate hosted by the Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce.  Mackinac Island is ground zero for an Enbridge oil spill in the Straits of Mackinac.  A new EPIC-MRI poll made public today shows 87 percent of likely voters in Michigan’s November election are concerned about a Great Lakes oil spill from Enbridge’s Line 5 in the Straits .

Sierra Club and Clean Water Action Think Candidates for Governor Should Answer the Following Questions as They Debate on Mackinac Island in the Shadow of Dangerous Line 5:

1) As Governor will you use your authority to shut down Enbridge Line 5 and keep all oil pipelines out of the Great Lakes?

2) Will you pledge today to not accept any campaign contributions from political action committees or individuals connected with Enbridge Energy or the oil industry?

3) Enbridge Energy has violated its agreement with the State of Michigan to operate Line 5 by failing to maintain anchor supports as required and allowing protective pipeline coatings to deteriorate.  Will you as Governor use your authority to revoke the state’s easement agreement with Enbridge for Line 5 in the Straits of Mackinac?

4) Will you state unequivocally that you oppose any replacement scheme for Line 5 in the Straits of Mackinac that keeps oil pipelines in the Great Lakes, including a tunnel through the Straits?

5) The Treaty of 1836 establishes the right to fish in the Straits of Mackinac for Michigan’s Native American tribes. This right is dependent on a healthy ecosystem to support fish stocks.   Do you agree that this Treaty prevents the state from legally permitting a tunnel, trench or other pipeline construction that would damage the ecological resources of the Straits and leave Native American fishing rights at risk from an oil pipeline rupture?

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Press Release: Sierra Club Michigan Chapter Endorses Dana Nessel for Michigan Attorney General

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE    Contact: Angela Vasquez-Giroux Wittrock

Tuesday, May 15, 2018         media@dana2018.com


Sierra Club Michigan Chapter Endorses Dana Nessel for Michigan Attorney General
Laud Nessel’s deep commitment to protecting public health, Great Lakes

LANSING -- Noting her pledge to shut down Enbridge Line 5 as her first act in office and her unwavering commitment to protecting public health and the Great Lakes, the Sierra Club Michigan Chapter has endorsed Dana Nessel for Michigan Attorney General, her campaign announced today.

“Given the unprecedented challenges facing our Great Lakes, our climate, and public health, getting Dana Nessel elected as Michigan's next Attorney General is one of our top priorities,” said Mike Berkowitz, Sierra Club Michigan Chapter Legislative and Political Director. “In contrast, Bill Schuette is the worst environmental Attorney General we've had in decades, leading the charge against air emission safeguards, disregarding the impacts of climate change, and consistently siding with corporate polluters. Dana Nessel will restore integrity and the values of environmental justice to the office of the Attorney General.”

The Sierra Club is a grassroots organization whose political strength is in educating and mobilizing environmental voters. In backing Dana Nessel, the Sierra Club brings with them their 150,000 Michigan members and supporters who will stand with Dana and work hard to make sure she wins in November.

“For the past 15 years, the office of Michigan Attorney General has been used to protect the bottom line of wealthy corporations, even as they pollute our air and poison our water to increase their profits,” Nessel said. “That stops on my first day in office. I’ll shut down Enbridge Line 5 and put the power of the AG’s office where it belongs: protecting the people of Michigan, and holding corporate polluters accountable when they harm our communities and our natural treasures.”

Nessel, a noted civil rights attorney and former Wayne County Assistant Prosecutor, is the Michigan Democratic Party’s endorsed candidate for state Attorney General.  She’s earned the endorsement of a broad coalition of community leaders, elected officials, advocacy organizations and labor unions, including the Democratic Attorneys General Association, Michigan Association for Justice, the Michigan Education Association and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Michigan.

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Dana Nessel is a graduate of the University of Michigan and Wayne State University Law School. She was most recently managing partner of Nessel & Kessel Law, located in Detroit, and has nearly 25 years of legal experience. In 2012, she spearheaded the precedent-setting case, DeBoer v. Snyder, which challenged bans on adoption and marriage for same-sex couples in Michigan. She’s a fighter for Michigan residents.