95.3 / 88.5 FM Grand Rapids and 95.3 FM Muskegon
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Judge extends temporary restraining order, allows West leg of Line 5 to resume for testing

Underwater photo of Line 5
SCREEN SHOT OF A BALLARD MARINE INSPECTION VIDEO / ENBRIDGE ENERGY

The order stops short of granting Attorney General Dana Nessel’s request for an injunction against the company - instead extending and modifying the existing restraining order. 

Enbridge will be allowed to restart the western leg of Line 5 in order to conduct safety testing. The eastern portion will remain shutdown.

David Holtz is with the environmental group Oil and Water Don’t Mix, which advocates for a shutdown of the pipeline. 

“I think the Attorney General got what she needed which is a delay in keeping those pipelines shut down so they don’t pose a threat to the Great Lakes. That’s her primary concern.”

But, Holtz says the order dodges one of the broader questions around the case - whether the state has a right to regulate the pipeline at all.  That determination may come when the judge issues his final ruling in the case.

In a written statement a spokesperson for Enbridge said the company remains willing to work with the state to address concerns about the safety of Line 5 “and its ultimate replacement with The Great Lakes Tunnel.”