Wisconsin judge rules against Enbridge on Line 5, but stops short of shutdown
District Court Judge William Conley says the Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Chippewa has proven it was entitled to revoke permission for the pipeline to cross its territory back in 2013.
Conley's order, issued late Wednesday, also requires Enbridge to reroute the pipeline around Bad River territory within five years, an effort the company says is already underway. Environmental concerns are top of mind in Wisconsin, where the pipeline runs directly through the Bad River Reservation, more than 500 square kilometres of pristine wetlands, streams and wilderness.
Conley, however, concluded that the band was within its rights to decide not to renew the easements in 2013, and that the 1992 agreement was not by itself a guarantee that the pipeline would be allowed to continue to operate.