Megan Wittman, megan.wittman@sierraclub.org
LANSING, Mich. - A number of federal agencies, including the Army Corps of Engineers, are beginning to detail plans to fast-track unnecessary, dirty energy infrastructure projects without sufficient review, including the Line 5 tunnel project in the Straits of Mackinac. Agencies were directed to complete reports within 30 days by Donald Trump’s executive order declaring an energy emergency.
Owned by Canadian oil giant Enbridge, Line 5 is already highly controversial and poses an existential threat to the Great Lakes. The Line 5 tunnel project heightens the risk of an oil spill in the Great Lakes and the drinking water of 40 million people. Moreover, 95% of the product carried by Line 5 services Canada, not the U.S. The Canadian pipeline makes Canadian profits and supplies Canadian fuel.
Through this executive order, the Trump administration is seeking to disregard clean air and water safeguards to fast-track permits for fossil fuels, despite the fact that the United States is already the largest oil and gas producer and exporter in the world. At the same time, the executive order seeks to undermine standards that save energy and hampers America’s ability to generate clean, renewable energy.
In response, Sierra Club Michigan chapter director Elayne Coleman released the following statement:
“Rushing the Line 5 tunnel project is dangerous and careless. By attempting to evade legal review processes, Donald Trump is elevating Big Oil’s corporate interests above the safety of Michiganders and the 40 million people who rely on the Great Lakes for safe drinking water. This fictitious emergency is yet another effort by Trump and his administration to give handouts to fossil fuel corporations at the expense of real people and the environment.”
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The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.