A local oil spill in Sterling Heights last month is drawing scrutiny far beyond southeast Michigan. Coming just weeks after a record-setting release from Enbridge’s Line 5 in Wisconsin, it is another reminder that pipeline safety deserves sustained public attention.

Inside Climate News reports that approximately 600 gallons of crude oil leaked from Energy Transfer’s 59-year-old Marysville-to-Toledo pipeline. The company’s leak detection systems missed the release. A member of the public spotted oil seeping through the ground and into a storm drain and alerted the local fire department.

According to the reporting, the failure occurred at a steel sleeve installed in 2010 to repair the pipeline. Federal regulators identified concerns about failed repairs and missing records, prompting scrutiny of Energy Transfer’s approximately 20,000-mile hazardous-liquid pipeline network nationwide.

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration directed the company to inventory repair sleeves across its network and develop a plan to evaluate their integrity and address vulnerabilities. The agency cited a risk of additional similar failures, including concerns arising from a previous Energy Transfer leak in Pennsylvania.

Wisconsin’s record-setting Line 5 release

On August 25, Enbridge’s Line 5 released approximately 1.3 million gallons of natural gas liquids in Iron County, Wisconsin. According to Enbridge, an unoccupied subcontractor’s truck rolled into an excavation and struck the pipeline, releasing primarily propane and butane into the atmosphere.

A Wisconsin Public Radio review of federal records found that it was the largest reported oil and gas pipeline spill in Wisconsin in more than 50 years. The review examined records dating back to 1970.

The Sterling Heights and Wisconsin incidents involved different companies and different products. Together, they strengthen the case for independent oversight, reliable inspection and detection systems, and public access to information about pipeline risks and failures.

Protecting the Great Lakes and our climate

For Sierra Club, these incidents reinforce the urgency of our campaign to shut down Enbridge’s Line 5 and protect the Great Lakes. The pipeline’s twin lines beneath the Straits of Mackinac were built in 1953. Their location places an aging piece of fossil fuel infrastructure at the meeting point of Lakes Michigan and Huron.

A major oil spill at this crossing could have devastating consequences for both lakes. The Straits’ powerful currents reverse direction periodically, allowing oil to spread east into Lake Huron and west into Lake Michigan while complicating containment. A University of Michigan study, published in 2016, modeled 840 hypothetical spills and identified more than 700 miles of shoreline as potentially vulnerable across the scenarios examined. Areas at greatest risk included Mackinac and Bois Blanc islands, Mackinaw City and nearby mainland shorelines. In one modeled scenario, a 25,000-barrel release could affect more than 150 miles of shoreline.

The consequences would extend beyond the immediate cleanup. Oil-contaminated shorelines and aquatic habitats could harm fish and wildlife, disrupt fishing and close beaches and recreational areas. For Michigan communities whose livelihoods depend on visitors coming to boat, fish, swim and experience the Great Lakes, a major spill could also threaten businesses and seasonal employment. The damage would reach into the natural places, local economies and outdoor traditions that help define our state.

Detroit and southeast Michigan have a direct stake in protecting this shared water system. Detroit’s drinking water comes from the Detroit River, while the broader regional system also draws directly from Lake Huron. Water from Lake Huron flows south through the St. Clair River and Lake St. Clair into the Detroit River, connecting our local source water to the upper Great Lakes. That connection does not establish that a Straits spill would reach Detroit’s drinking-water intakes; its movement and impacts would depend on the circumstances of the release. It does explain why protecting the Great Lakes is a direct concern for Detroit families and communities throughout our region.

Protecting our water and addressing climate change belong in the same conversation. The pollution associated with oil, gas and coal affects our air, water and land throughout their extraction, transportation, processing and use. The costs extend beyond what we pay at the pump or on our utility bills. They include harm to our health, medical expenses, contaminated landscapes, damaged ecosystems and costly cleanup efforts that can continue long after an incident disappears from the headlines.

We believe the best long-term way to address this pollution is a rapid transition to clean energy. Expanding solar, wind and geothermal energy, supported by batteries that store electricity for use when needed, can reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and the pollution that comes with them. This transition is an investment in public health, cleaner water and healthier communities, as well as a response to climate change. Moving quickly matters because continued dependence means continued exposure to these risks and costs.

At the same time, we also need effective safeguards for the fossil fuel infrastructure operating today. Communities deserve clear information about what runs beneath their streets, in our backyards and waterways, how failures are detected, and who is responsible when something goes wrong. Regulators must have the resources and authority to investigate problems and enforce corrective action. Companies must be accountable for preventing releases and addressing the damage they cause.

Turn concern into action

Oil & Water Don’t Mix offers information, petitions and opportunities to take action to shut down Line 5. Visit the campaign’s website to learn more and add your voice.

Here in southeast Michigan, we also invite you to connect with our local Climate Team. Visit the Southeast Michigan Group’s Climate & Energy Conservation Subcommittee page to learn more about the team and how to get involved.

Protecting the Great Lakes takes informed, engaged people willing to speak up. These recent incidents give us another reason to do so—and another reason to press for a faster transition to clean energy.