A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
The Enbridge Energy Line 3 dominoes are falling, as various agencies sign off on the project to replace the existing pipeline.
Last week the Line 3 project received approval of a water quality certification from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and several needed permits from the Minnesota Department of Natural resources, including a license to cross state land and public water. Twelve of 17 members of an MPCA advisory group on environmental justice issues resigned after the agency approved the permit on Nov. 12.
On Monday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers approved one of the last remaining permits for the pipeline replacement across northern Minnesota, meaning Enbridge now has all its required federal permits.
On Tuesday the company received authorization to construct from the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission, not the first time the MPUC has approved the pipeline replacement project.
All that remains is a final stormwater permit from the MPCA before construction can begin.
Enbridge wants to replace the Minnesota section, which was built in the 1960s and runs at half its original capacity. Replacement segments in Canada, North Dakota and Wisconsin are already operating.
Line 3 begins in the Alberta oil sands in Canada and clips a corner of North Dakota before crossing Minnesota on its way to Enbridge’s terminal in Superior. The new Line 3 would replace one that has been in use for decades and currently clips the northeast corner of Carlton County. The new line route was originally shifted to avoid reservation lands, including Fond du Lac, showing the line entering the county near Cromwell. Enbridge and Fond du Lac agreed to keep the current route that bisects reservation lands that straddle the Carlton and St. Louis county line.
It’s a project that’s been six years in the making in Minnesota, where environmental and tribal groups have protested the pipeline and the state has questioned the need for more oil and the permitting process itself at times. An appeal by the state Commerce Department is pending.
