Work begins on controversial Line 3 pipeline in the US
Regulators have approved the final permit for Enbridge Energy’s Line 3 crude oil pipeline replacement across northern Minnesota.
Construction has now begun on the controversial $2.6 billion (€2.2 billion) project in the US.
Line 3 is a tar sands pipeline that will run across the northern part of the state.
However, opponents of the pipeline argue that the project is violating indigenous treaty rights and risking over 200 bodies of water with the threat of an oil spill.
They also argue that the pipeline reverses progress on climate change with a carbon equivalent of 50 coal-fired power plants.
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency granted a construction stormwater permit for the project, which was the last hurdle that Calgary, Alberta-based Enbridge needed to clear after years of reviews and court battles.
The US Army Corps of Engineers and the independent Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) also gave their final approval.
Line 3 will have the capacity to carry nearly a million barrels of tar sands per day from the world’s most destructive oil operation in Canada.
The pipeline route cuts through untouched wetlands and the treaty territories of Anishinaabe people, through the Mississippi headwaters, and to the shores of Lake Superior.
Construction has now begun on the controversial $2.6 billion (€2.2 billion) project in the US.
Line 3 is a tar sands pipeline that will run across the northern part of the state.
However, opponents of the pipeline argue that the project is violating indigenous treaty rights and risking over 200 bodies of water with the threat of an oil spill.
They also argue that the pipeline reverses progress on climate change with a carbon equivalent of 50 coal-fired power plants.
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency granted a construction stormwater permit for the project, which was the last hurdle that Calgary, Alberta-based Enbridge needed to clear after years of reviews and court battles.
The US Army Corps of Engineers and the independent Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) also gave their final approval.
Line 3 will have the capacity to carry nearly a million barrels of tar sands per day from the world’s most destructive oil operation in Canada.
The pipeline route cuts through untouched wetlands and the treaty territories of Anishinaabe people, through the Mississippi headwaters, and to the shores of Lake Superior.
