Appeals court upholds Line 5 trespass ruling, delays pipeline shutdown
(UI) — A federal appeals court has upheld a lower court's finding that Enbridge is trespassing by operating portions of its Line 5 pipeline across tribal allotment lands on the Bad River Reservation in Wisconsin, but stopped short of ordering an immediate shutdown.
According to Pipeline & Gas Journal, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit ruled that Enbridge no longer holds valid easements for 12 allotted parcels where rights-of-way expired in 2013. However, the court sent the case back to the district court to reconsider the appropriate remedies, including the timetable for removing the pipeline and other injunctive relief.
The disputed segment covers approximately 12 miles of Line 5, part of Enbridge's 645-mile pipeline system that transports more than 20 million gallons of crude oil and natural gas liquids each day between Superior, Wis., and Sarnia, Ontario. The Bad River Band filed suit in 2019, citing expired easements and erosion concerns that could expose the pipeline near the Bad River.
While the trespass ruling remains in place, P&GJ reported, the appeals decision leaves unresolved the long-term future of the pipeline as Enbridge continues seeking permits for a proposed reroute around the reservation.
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