FLOW, Bay Mills Tribe, and Oil & Water Don't Mix Ask: Are Michigan’s Residents, Communities, and Businesses Insured if Line 5 Fails in the Straits?

FOR IMMEDIATERELEASE:
February 7, 2019

Contacts:

Skip Pruss, Board Chair, FLOW (For Love of Water), (517) 930-4426, pruss@5lakesenergy.com 

Bryan Newland, Tribal Chairman, Bay Mills Indian Community, (906) 248-8100, bnewland@baymills.org 

David Holtz, Communications Coordinator, Oil & Water Don’t Mix, (313) 300-4454, david@davidholtz.org 

FLOW, Bay Mills Tribe, and O&WDM Ask: Are Michigan’s Residents, Communities, and Businesses Insured if Line 5 Fails in the Straits?

Investigation Reveals Critical Omissions and Finds Pipeline Might be Uninsurable

Traverse City, Mich. – If the 66-year-old Enbridge Line 5 pipelines fail in the Straits of Mackinac, residents, coastal communities, businesses, and the State of Michigan could be left with lasting environmental and economic damage and little or no hope for insurance coverage from pipeline-owner Enbridge for the oil spill, according to environmental and tribal organizations in a teleconference held today.

Michigan citizens may believe they are protected, at least at some level, by the insurance Enbridge should be required to have in place to pay the costs of cleaning up an oil spill disaster in the Straits, where Lake Michigan meets Lake Huron. Unfortunately, that may not be the case. 

A new FLOW investigation has revealed potential holes in Michigan’s financial protections against a Line 5 pipeline rupture into the Great Lakes. The potential shortcomings could prove ruinous to communities, residents, and businesses that suffer losses at the hands of a Line 5 oil spill in the Straits. The problems can be traced to last year when environmental regulators were largely sidelined by the Snyder administration, which negotiated four Line 5 agreements directly with Line 5-owner Enbridge from the executive offices of the governor. (See FLOW’s article about the investigation here.)

“The findings of our study suggest that Enbridge’s Line 5 oil pipelines in the Straits may never have been adequately insured and – given their age, location, and impaired condition – might be uninsurable,” said Skip Pruss, chairman of FLOW’s board of directors and an energy policy expert. “In its haste to sign agreements with Enbridge, the state during the end of the Snyder administration failed to conduct a study that would evaluate the financial capacity of Enbridge to address a worst-case scenario for damages and claims that may result from an existing Line 5 failure.”

The new revelations come as Governor Gretchen Whitmer has issued an executive order and new directives aimed at strengthening the state’s regulatory and administrative oversight capabilities for the Great Lakes, although Republican legislators are seeking to overturn the governor’s order in favor of delegating oversight in part to the businesses being regulated by the state.  

Unlike leaders in Minnesota and Wisconsin dealing with Enbridge, there is no evidence that the State of Michigan conducted a risk management and insurance review of any kind, nor does it appear that the State sought any assistance from qualified experts to determine whether the financial assurances Enbridge has proffered would, in fact, protect the State of Michigan and its natural resources as well as coastal communities, citizens, property owners, and businesses.

“While no amount of money can restore an oil-damaged fishery, the freshwater of the Great Lakes, or our cultural heritage, it simply is a dereliction of duty for the Snyder administration to not ensure that Enbridge has insurance that specifically covers oil spill damage and those tribes, communities, families, and businesses that would be harmed for generations to come,” said Bryan Newland, Tribal Chairman of the Bay Mills Indian Community.

A preliminary review raises many questions regarding the adequacy of Enbridge’s financial assurances that are supposed to mitigate the economic harm if Line 5 fails. Findings include that Enbridge’s:

·         General Liability insurance may not cover oil spill clean-up costs, natural resources damages and claims by injured third-parties.

·         Financial assurances are capped at $1.878 billion dollars, far less that the $6.3 billion estimate of worst-case damages determined by a study by Michigan State University, and a potential $45 billion loss to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product in after just 15 days from disrupting Great Lakes commercial shipping and steel production.

·         Enbridge Inc., the parent company, is not a signatory to the agreement relating to financial assurances; instead three Enbridge subsidiaries signed the agreement.  It is unknown whether these subsidiaries are insured.

·         The State of Michigan may not be named as an “additional insured” on the insurance policies.  If not, then the State of Michigan would have no direct right of recovery against an insurer. 

Based upon the preliminary review of the financial assurances intended to mitigate the present economic risks posed by a Line 5 failure and the ensuing questions and issues that have been identified by FLOW and independent insurance experts, the State of Michigan should:

·         Retain qualified experts to determine the adequacy of Enbridge’s financial assurances and to make appropriate recommendations regarding mitigating the magnitude of the financial risks posed by Line 5;

·         Determine to what extent the State of Michigan is bound by the indefinite and inadequate terms and provisions of the “Second Agreement;” 

·         Require Enbridge, Inc., to name the State of Michigan as an “additional insured” and/or “named insured” on its insurance coverage for Line 5; and

·         Seek the termination of operation of Line 5 until all financial assurance deficiencies are fully cured and satisfied.

“We are calling on the Whitmer Administration to investigate the apparent lack of insurance for an Enbridge Line 5 oil spill in the Straits and address the damage done by Snyder and lame-duck lawmakers before they rushed out the exit doors at the close of 2018, said David Holtz, Communications Coordinator, Oil & Water Don’t Mix. “It’s past time to shut down Line 5 before its delivers a direct hit to the very heart of the Great Lakes and the Pure Michigan economy.”

About FLOW and Oil & Water Don’t Mix: FLOW is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Traverse City, Michigan, working to protect the common waters of the Great Lakes Basin through public trust solutions. FLOW is a leading legal and scientific voice, and a founding steering committee member of the broad-based, multi-year Oil & Water Don’t Mix (O&WDM) campaign dedicated to preventing a catastrophic oil spill from the decaying Line 5 pipelines that push 6 billion gallons of oil a year through the open waters of the Straits of Mackinac – the very heart of the Great Lakes. Learn more at www.FLOWforWater.org and www.OilandWaterDontMix.org.

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NEWS RELEASE: Clean air advocates applaud creation of Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 
Monday, Feb. 4, 2019

Contact: Nick Dodge, Byrum & Fisk Advocacy Communications, (517) 333-1606

Clean air advocates applaud creation of Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy

LANSING – Clean air and water advocates across the state today applauded Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for announcing the Department of Environmental Quality will be reorganized and replaced by a new Department of the Environment, Great Lakes and Energy [more details here].  Gov. Whitmer also announced Michigan will join the U.S. Climate Alliance to combat the impacts of climate change to Michigan communities, our air, Great Lakes and natural resources.

“Gov. Whitmer’s action sets a clear tone for how her administration is going to tackle climate change, protect the Great Lakes and our communities. We applaud Gov. Whitmer for taking a strong stance on climate change and fighting for our air, land, water and public health,” said Mike Berkowitz, legislative and political director for the Sierra Club Michigan Chapter.

"With the alarming recent climate reports from the world's top scientists and the rollbacks of our clean air and water protections at the federal level, urgent action on climate change is more important than ever. Today’s announcement shows that Michigan takes climate change seriously and aims to be a leader in promoting clean energy and fighting climate change," said Kate Madigan, director of the Michigan Climate Action Network. 

“Gov. Whitmer’s announcement is a step in the right direction toward reducing dangerous pollution in our Great Lakes, rivers, streams and drinking water and speeding up Michigan’s transition to clean, renewable energy. As the Great Lakes state, Michigan should be leading the way on combating climate change, and we applaud Gov. Whitmer for pushing our state to do better,” said Mary Brady-Enerson, Michigan director for Clean Water Action.

"The impacts of climate change are already hurting our families, industries, and natural resources across the state. More extreme weather like the recent life-threatening cold across the Midwest or Michigan’s historic flood of 2014 will only become more frequent,” said Ariana Gonzalez, senior policy analyst for the Natural Resources Defense Council. “With this announcement, Governor Whitmer and her administration are saying that we refuse to sit by idly as our health and economy are put at risk.”

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Sierra Club Michigan Chapter Awards Honor Those Who Make a Difference Every Day

For Immediate Release
January 28, 2019

Contact: Gail Philbin, Director at 312-493-2384

Anne Woiwode, Chair at 517-974-2112

Sierra Club Michigan Chapter Awards Honor Those Who Make a Difference Every Day

Sierra Club Michigan Chapter Awards presented January 26 in Lansing recognize the extraordinary contributions of Michiganders and Michigan organizations who are making valuable contributions to protection of public health, natural resources and democracy. The Chapter is honored to acknowledge the following awardees:

State Senator Stephanie Chang of Detroit received the highest honor the Michigan Chapter bestows, the Jane Elder Environmentalist of the Year Award. The award honors exceptional leadership in environmental protection in Michigan. Sen. Chang maintained a perfect rating on the Chapter’s environmental voting scorecard during her tenure as a State Representative. She has worked with Sierra Club to introduce legislation to protect against toxic air pollution, make water a human right, expand clean energy, and restore citizen oversight to the Department of Environmental Quality.

Bridge Magazine was awarded the Environmental Journalism Award. The mission of the online Bridge Magazine is “to inform Michigan citizens through fact-based, nonpartisan journalism that identifies critical issues.” Bridge CEO John Bebow led the effort by his publication to elevate the role of reporting on environmental issues in Michigan by hiring Jim Malewitz as their full time environmental reporter in 2017. Jim’s reporting has catalyzed a growing interest in other media outlets to increase environmental reporting. Bridge has also become a critical, “go to” investigative journalism forum, helping to promote transparency in government through its “Truth Squad” reporting on candidates and in-depth articles on Michigan democracy issues. bridgemi.com

Mona Munroe-Younis of Flint was awarded the Bunyan Bryant Award for environmental justice work. Mona helped establish the Michigan Chapter’s Environmental Justice Action Group in 2017, which quickly developed into a cohesive, democratically organized alliance of residents on the frontlines fighting environmental injustice in the Flint/Detroit region. Learn more at

sierraclub.org/michigan/environmental-justice-action-group

Change Media was recognized with the Ed Steinman Michigan Chapter’s Digital Excellence Award. Change Media is a Michigan firm that has created sophisticated social media campaigns that help the Chapter target supporters and environmentalists on Facebook in past elections and built our social media presence.  Their efforts include the Chapter’s groundbreaking political ad and video program in 2016 and our work to support Gretchen Whitmer’s campaign and other endorsed candidates in 2018. https://changemediagroup.com

Mining Action Group received the White Pine Award for extraordinary dedication to environmental protection. This Upper Peninsula-based volunteer group plays the leading role in reviewing and challenging mine expansions and new proposals such as the expansion of the Eagle Mine near Marquette and the final permitting of the Back Forty mine in Menominee County. https://savethewildup.org

Pegg Clevenger of Jackson was honored with the Sylvania Award for her exceptional leadership as a new Michigan Chapter volunteer. Pegg quickly emerged as a leader and budding expert on factory farms when she and others in Jackson learned about a proposal for a massive hog factory in their area in 2017. Pegg led the effort to mobilize the community and get the facility’s state permit modified to lessen the impact on a nearby wetland.

As the new chair of the Southwest Michigan Group, Roz Linsea, was recognized with a Michigan Chapter Service Award. Roz has built a strong regional Sierra Club group that educates and engages local residents about important environmental issues. She is a big solar energy booster in West Michigan as a partner in Solar Winds Power Systems, LLC., the business she runs with her husband Mike, that participates in the Sierra Club Solar Partnership. sierraclub.org/michigan/sierra-club-solar-partnership.

Mary Andersson was recognized with the Marlene Fluharty Award for her volunteer leadership at multiple levels of the Sierra Club. She’s a longtime member and volunteer who has held numerous positions including Outings Chair, Political Chair and Executive Committee representative for the Crossroads Group. She has served as a Chapter Political Committee member and has attended service outings at the group and national level.

Chris Back has been awarded the Trillium Award for outstanding student contributions. Chris began as a Sierra Club political intern on Gretchen Driskell’s campaign in 2016 and has served as the Chapter’s communications intern since January 2017. He has been an active Spartan Sierra Club member since 2016 and was just elected to the Michigan Chapter Executive Committee.

David Holtz was honored with the Theodore Roosevelt Political Leadership award. For more than five years David has served on the Chapter’s Political Committee, which has benefited from his decades of experience in the political and communications arenas. He has elevated democracy-related issues within the Chapter’s strategic priorities and in 2018 coordinated the Sierra Club’s work with the Gretchen Whitmer gubernatorial campaign.

Richard Morley Barron received the Chair's Award for his exceptional leadership of the Michigan Chapter Political Committee for eight years. During his tenure as PolCom chair, Richard, in collaboration with Political Director Mike Berkowitz, led the dramatic expansion of Sierra Club's political engagement in Michigan. Richard continues to serve on the Political Committee as well as the Michigan Chapter Executive Committee, and has served as the Michigan Chapter Legal Committee Chair. 

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The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3.4 million members and supporters nationwide, and over 120,000 in Michigan. In addition to creating opportunities for people of all ages, levels and locations to have meaningful outdoor experiences, the Sierra Club works to safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and litigation. For more information, visit http://www.sierraclub.org/michigan.

CYANOBACTERIA DNA FOUND IN ADRIAN’S TREATED TAP WATER

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

December 19, 2018

Contact:  Brittney Dulbs, 517.442.5294 brittney.dulbs@gmail.com

   Pam Taylor, 517.270.2419 ptaylor001@msn.com

CYANOBACTERIA DNA FOUND IN ADRIAN’S TREATED TAP WATER

Adrian, Michigan (Dec. 19, 2018) – DNA test results released today show the presence of cyanobacteria in one of three samples taken from different Adrian homes. Cyanobacteria, or blue-green algae, can produce microcystin, a potent colorless, odorless, toxin that is invisible to the naked eye and cannot be removed by boiling.  Microcystin is responsible for the 2014 Toledo water intake shutdown and was responsible for a do-not-drink advisory for Carroll Township, Ohio in 2013.  Earlier this year, the City of Salem, Oregon, distributed bottled water to citizens after finding cyanobacteria in its municipal water distribution system.  Salem gets its drinking water from its reservoir, Detroit Lake, and has experienced algal blooms for several years, but 2018 was the first time cyanobacteria was found in the drinking water supply.

Scientists don’t know what triggers cyanobacteria to produce the microcystin toxin and can’t predict when it will happen.  Because of concern that microcystin-producing cyanobacteria could have successfully passed through the City’s treatment system and entered the distribution system and colonized at certain locations in the City, some of Adrian’s drinking water customers had their tap water tested for the presence of both cyanobacteria and microcystin DNA.  Testing performed using the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) method confirmed the presence of the cyanobacteria organism in one of the three samples tested.

Brittney Dulbs, one of the Adrian residents who continues to have problems with her home tap water, said, “This has been going on for far too long.  Based on a map of the addresses of the people who have contacted me, it seems like a pattern is emerging.  We need the City to supply clean, safe water.”

All three samples tested negative for microcystin.  Dr. Tom Prychitko, Director of Helix Biological Laboratory, wrote, “My feeling based on these test results is that the source of tap water in Adrian does have some sort of low level of contamination of Cyanobacteria that may periodically vary so that it may be detectable one week and then not detectable the next.”  More samples have been taken and the results will be released when they are available.

Gail Philbin, Director of the Michigan Sierra Club, said, "The threat to water quality in Michigan has only grown since the drinking water for Toledo and southern Michigan was poisoned in 2014.  Annual algae blooms have increased in size and frequency and location, yet the state has made little progress in addressing their causes.  Given the prevalence of the problem in Michigan, it's important for state and local officials to take the situation in Adrian seriously and work with local residents to identify the scope and source of the cyanobacteria and resolve it before it becomes a public health crisis."

“Ohio requires public water treatment systems to report tests for microcystin which are posted regularly on the Ohio EPA web site.  In addition, Toledo has a ‘Drinking Water Quality Dashboard’ that shows cyanobacteria/microcystin test results that they immediately post on their web site. Adrian’s water quality report for 2017 discloses no test results for microcystin and there are no postings for 2018. Michigan DEQ should require testing and the public posting of the results for microcystin from Adrian and for all water treatment plants where blue-green algae is near drinking water intakes,” stated Sandy Bihn, Lake Erie Waterkeeper.

Bentley Johnson, Partnerships Manager for the Michigan League of Conservation Voters, added, "Cyanobacteria is not only a threat to those that rely on Lake Erie for their drinking water — the threat of toxic contamination from harmful algal blooms can be found statewide, including the city of Adrian. We encourage officials to use all the tools at their disposal to investigate these reports in Adrian and make sure that drinking water is safe for residents. We must also work collectively across the state in a bold manner to address the root causes of harmful algal blooms in our Great Lakes and in our inland lakes, rivers, and streams."  

The City of Adrian gets its drinking water from two sources:  Lake Adrian, a reservoir created by damming Wolf Creek, and from groundwater wells.  Wolf Creek is a tributary of the River Raisin that outfalls into Lake Erie.  Lake Adrian has experienced algal blooms over the years, including last summer.  In 2018, the City reported high amounts of microbes that cause taste and odor problems, which can be produced by cyanobacteria when they die.  Despite continued treatment by the City, taste and odor problems continue to this day at several locations scattered throughout the City, long after the end of the bloom.  Pam Taylor, a local environmental activist and member of Environmentally Concerned Citizens of South Central Michigan who has been testing streams in the Raisin watershed for many years and has found high levels of nutrients and bacteria with DNA from livestock manure and human waste, said, “Cyanobacteria and microcystin were found at several spots upstream from Adrian in Wolf Creek in both 2017 and 2018.  While cyanobacteria at low levels is common in the summer, more serious blooms along with increased microcystin levels are happening upstream from Lake Adrian in the Wolf Creek watershed.”  Blissfield and Deerfield, both downstream from Lake Adrian, get their drinking water from the Raisin.

Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and the City of Adrian were contacted about the preliminary results of these tests last Friday, December 14, 2018, and the official report was sent today.

Attachments:

Lab results – Helix Biological Laboratory

Harmful Algal Bloom Fact Sheet “About Harmful Algal Blooms” – Center for Disease Control

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State House Gets Revised Line 5 Bill Rearranging Tunnel Deck Chairs While Enbridge Pipelines Remain Threat That Could Sink the Great Lakes

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, December 5, 2018

Media contact:  David Holtz/313-300-4454/david@davidholtz.org

State House Gets Revised Line 5 Bill Rearranging Tunnel Deck Chairs While Enbridge Pipelines Remain Threat That Could Sink the Great Lakes

Senate Endorses Move Aimed At Stopping Incoming Governor, Attorney General from Protecting Mackinac Straits from Dangerous Pipelines

LANSING, MI—Citizens groups blasted a Republican state Senate bill passed today by lame duck lawmakers that increases the likelihood of a catastrophic oil pipeline rupture in the Great Lakes while giving a private foreign corporation access to Michigan’s waters, bottomlands, and taxpayer money.

After modifying a provision that would directly saddle the Mackinac Bridge Authority with ownership of a proposed oil tunnel, lawmakers approved Senate Bill 1197. The measure creates a new state body--the Mackinac Straits Corridor Authority-- to own and govern the proposed tunnel, although questions remained regarding its relationship with the Mackinac Bridge Authority and any potential liability that could impact the bridge authority.

The proposal now goes to the state House for continued fast-track approval and then on to Gov. Snyder’s desk.  Snyder has been the chief driver of the legislation, which would allow Enbridge Energy Partners Inc. to continue operating the twin Line 5 oil pipelines in the Mackinac Straits under proposed agreements the Canadian multinational corporation secured from the outgoing Michigan governor.  

“This proposed legislation sentences the Great Lakes and Michigan to 10 years or more of living with a massive high risk oil spill in the Mackinac Straits,” said

Anne Woiwode, Sierra Club Michigan Chapter Chair.  “House members should see this proposed legislation for what it is—a dangerous giveaway to Enbridge—and reject it.”

Enbridge and Snyder have signed agreements that call for Line 5 oil tunnel to be constructed under the Straits, a project that if undertaken, could take up to 10 years or more to complete. Meanwhile, the state has agreed to allow Enbridge to keep operating its deteriorating pipelines on the Straits lakebed where they are subject to ship anchor strikes, corrosion and other threats.

“If Enbridge, a multinational corporation, wants an oil tunnel in the Mackinac Straits that primarily benefits its shareholders it should propose doing it without governmental partnerships or special treatment,” said Sean McBrearty, senior organizer for Clean Water Action  “We need elected representatives who will take care of Michigan’s citizens, its businesses and the Great Lakes, not a Canadian company that has consistently lied to the state and the public about the condition of Line 5—a company that was negligently responsible for the worst oil pipeline rupture in Michigan history.”

After more than four years of Enbridge-funded studies,  Gov. Snyder is racing the clock on an expiring term in an attempt to block his successor, Gov.-elect Gretchen Whitmer, and Attorney General-elect Dana Nessel, from decommissioning Line 5.   

The new tunnel authority would allow Snyder to immediately appoint a small, three-member board to six-year terms and empower them  to implement agreements for a Line 5 tunnel. The proposed legislation would also:

• Establish a recklessly rushed process with a Dec. 21 deadline -- less than 3 weeks from now -- for creating a series of agreements involving complicated construction and operation of a Mackinac Straits tunnel with little or no review by the public and tribes with treaty rights in the Straits.   
• Require the incoming Attorney General Dana Nessel to defend the new Mackinac Straits Corridor Authority against multiple potential legal challenges, essentially obligating Michigan taxpayers to defend a tunnel that will primarily benefit Enbridge, a foreign corporation.

Sierra Club Job Posting: Great Lakes State Organizer

​SIERRA CLUB IS HIRING!

Sierra Club will expand its capacity to tackle environmental threats in Michigan by adding a new full-time, limited duration position to its staff in 2019. If you like a challenge, want to work for positive change and build a better world for future generations, then you could be a good fit for Sierra Club Michigan.

We are currently looking for qualified candidates for a full-time Great Lakes State Organizer position who will work on our efforts to tackle the emerging PFAS toxic threat to drinking water around the state, our fight to shut down Enbridge's Line 5 pipeline and other challenges to the Great Lakes. The job description and application information for the Great Lakes State Organizer is found here. 

Industrial dairy with history of environmental violations seeks State approval to expand in Barry County

Expansion will annually add 900 animals and generate 5,402,597 additional gallons of manure; Public Comments due November 1


Oct. 23, 2018

Media Contact:  Gail Philbin, Sierra Club Michigan Director, 616-805-3063, gail.philbin@sierraclub.org

Lansing--Prairie View Dairy LLC, a concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO) in Prairieville Township, is seeking a change in its state Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) permit to reflect an expansion of its animal herd by 900 animals (40%) to a total of 3,150 cows. The increase means the operation will generate 27,610,432 gallons of waste per year, an annual increase of 5,402,597 gallons in a lake-filled region of the state already saturated with CAFOs and animal waste.

Concerned area residents have the opportunity to request a Public Hearing by November 1 to learn more about Prairie View’s request and the dairy factory’s handling of animal waste as well as submit comments about the proposal by emailing Megan McMahon at the Michigan DEQ,  mcmahonm1@michigan.gov. Submitting comments and having a public hearing are the only ways local residents can get their voices heard about the dairy expansion. Deadline for a hearing request and comments is November 1.

Animal waste from some of the nearly 300 CAFOs in Michigan frequently makes its way into our waterways, leading to a host of environmental and health problems. In the case of Prairie View, a significant spill in 2015 ran into West Gilkey Lake and led to the DEQ issuing a Consent Order and fining Prairie View Dairy CAFO.

Manure feeds the algae blooms that plague our inland waters and was a key factor in the growth of the toxic algae that poisoned drinking water for Toledo and southern Michigan in 2014. Water and soil pollution can occur at any point in a dairy operation, including from over-application of waste to fields of manure slurry containing untreated feces, urine, disease-causing bacteria, anti-biotics, and hazardous chemicals such as ammonia and methane.

Sierra Club has been at the forefront of battling CAFO pollution in Michigan for nearly three decades. To learn more, visit https://www.sierraclub.org/michigan/why-are-cafos-bad#health-effects

For questions about submitting public comments, email gail.philbin@sierraclub.org

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