Pipeline safety bill a response to growing concern about safety of pipelines in Great Lakes

LANSING—The Michigan League of Conservation Voters praised US Senator Gary Peters and US Senator Debbie Stabenow for introducing legislation to expand financial liability for pipelines operating in the Great Lakes.

“If passed by Congress, the bill would serve as an important insurance policy for the Great Lakes–holding the companies operating pipelines in our waters fully financially accountable for cleanup costs in the event of a catastrophe,” said Lisa Wozniak, executive director of the Michigan League of Conservation Voters. “Senators Peters and Stabenow deserve praise for moving proactively to prevent a disastrous oil spill from striking at the heart of our Great Lakes, particularly with the specter of Enbridge’s aging Line 5 pipeline looming large here in Michigan and throughout the region.”

The need for this legislation is reinforced by the memory of the Kalamazoo River Oil Spill of 2010, when lax management by Enbridge allowed more than a million gallons of heavy crude oil to be spilled into a major Michigan waterway.