By Canadian Press

Undo Line 5 shutdown order, federal government’s filing urges U.S. appeals court

Sep 18, 2023 | 11:03 AM

WASHINGTON — Ottawa is urging a U.S. appeals court to reverse a Wisconsin judge’s order that threatens to shut down the Line 5 cross-border pipeline by June 2026.

Forcing a shutdown would violate Canada’s treaty rights, government lawyers argue in an amicus brief filed today with the U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals.

A Wisconsin court ruling in June gave Calgary-based Enbridge Inc. an ultimatum: reroute the pipeline around an Indigenous reserve within three years or shut it down.

Enbridge plans a 66-kilometre detour to replace the 19-kilometre stretch that runs through the sovereign territory of the Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Chippewa.

Both sides are appealing the decision — Enbridge wants more time to finish the reroute, while lawyers for the band want the taps turned off for good.

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The band and its environmental allies fear a spill inside an ecologically sensitive and flood-prone Lake Superior watershed on the Bad River reserve.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 18. 2023.

The Canadian Press