Canadian pipeline giant Enbridge Inc. (ENB: $51.30) must fork over $11-million (U.S.) in penalties related to the Minnesota section of its Line 3 oil pipeline. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) and Department Natural Resources (DNR) announced yesterday that investigators have determined that Enbridge "violated a series of [water] regulations and requirements" during pipeline construction. The agencies, along with the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa (which experienced an aquifer breach near its reservation), have reached a settlement with Enbridge for $11-million (U.S.), comprising fines, financial assurances and payments for environmental projects.
The investigations come as a result of Enbridge's construction activities on the pipeline during 2021, when (according to the agencies) the company discharged stormwater into wetlands, released drilling mud into surface waters at 12 locations and was responsible for three aquifer breaches. "The DNR is holding Enbridge fully accountable ... [and] will continue work to ensure that mitigation and restoration effectors effectively address damage to Minnesota's natural resources," said DNR Commissioner Sarah Strommen in a statement.
"We appreciate that we were able to come to agreement with the agencies and are committed to making this right," said Enbridge in its own statement. It defended its "strong environmental safeguards" and the fact that it built the pipeline under "the strictest environmental requirements in state history." Then, perhaps realizing that there is a limit to that avenue of damage control when accepting millions of dollars in environmental penalties, Enbridge shifted tack and emphasized the project's economic benefits. It noted that it spent $3-billion (U.S.) in Minnesota alone, with an "overall regional economic impact" of $5-billion (U.S.).
The dollar signs in Enbridge's statement, and the construction activities mentioned in the Minnesota agencies' statement, are all in reference to the Line 3 replacement project. Line 3 as a whole was built in the 1960s to carry oil from Alberta to Wisconsin. With age and corrosion beginning to take a toll on capacity, Enbridge proposed upgrading and expanding the line in 2014, and finally brought the last upgraded segment (in Minnesota) into service in late 2021. This made it the first major Canadian oil pipeline expansion to be completed since Enbridge's Alberta Clipper in 2015.
As to be expected, the expansion faced fierce opposition from green groups, which persisted long after the pipeline came into full service last year. Indeed, the last of the legal challenges did not wrap up until about two weeks ago. A federal judge ruled on Oct. 7 that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers properly evaluated the Minnesota segment of Line 3 when issuing federal permits. This effectively knocked down a challenge to the federal permits lodged by the Sierra Club, Honor the Earth, the Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians and the White Earth Band of Ojibwe. According to local news outlets, this was the last of numerous lawsuits filed in state and federal courts against Line 3, all of which have resulted in rulings upholding the line's permits.