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Public comment on Line 5 tunnel plan open until December 18

Mackinac Bridge
Mark Brush
/
Michigan Radio

People have until December 18th to weigh in on a plan to build a new section of pipeline under the Straits of Mackinac. The pipeline would be put in a tunnel under the bedrock of the Straits and carry crude oil and natural gas liquids.

Earlier this week, Governor Rick Snyder signed a bill to create an authority that would oversee the construction and use of the tunnel by Enbridge Energy. Now all the pieces are in place to potentially finalize the deal with Enbridge.

Ed Golder is with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Documents that lay out the agreement between Enbridge and the state are posted online at mipetroleumpipeline.com.

“These are documents that are going to be critical to the discussion about a proposed tunnel in the Straits of Mackinac," says Golder. "And it’s important for the public to get a look at those documents before they become finalized and have an opportunity to make any substantive comments they may have.”

Golder says the reason for the abbreviated timeline is the new authority is scheduled to meet for the first time on December 19th. And they want to consider the comments.

Editor's note: Enbridge Energy is a financial sponsor of Michigan Radio.

Before becoming the newest Capitol reporter for the Michigan Public Radio Network, Cheyna Roth was an attorney. She spent her days fighting it out in court as an assistant prosecuting attorney for Ionia County. Eventually, Cheyna took her investigative and interview skills and moved on to journalism. She got her masters at Michigan State University and was a documentary filmmaker, podcaster, and freelance writer before finding her home with NPR. Very soon after joining MPRN, Cheyna started covering the 2016 presidential election, chasing after Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, and all their surrogates as they duked it out for Michigan. Cheyna also focuses on the Legislature and criminal justice issues for MPRN. Cheyna is obsessively curious, a passionate storyteller, and an occasional backpacker. Follow her on Twitter at @Cheyna_R