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Hearings continue over Line 3 oil pipeline

State regulators are considering whether to approve a $2 billion oil pipeline, which would run through the heart of the state.

ST. PAUL – The proposal to build a $2 billion oil pipeline through the heart of Minnesota continued to face scrutiny on Tuesday during ongoing public hearings with the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (MPUC).

The MPUC is expected to issue a decision on the project by the end of the month.

For the second straight day, the five members of the state regulatory agency questioned Enbridge Energy for hours about the company’s plan to replace the aging Line 3 with a brand-new pipeline through a different route. Enbridge, which is headquartered in Canada, wants to run a 1,000-mile line across the border through western Wisconsin, hoping to pump crude oil into the United States more efficiently.

The project has been met with intense backlash from environmental groups and some Native American tribes, who worry about oil spills and claim the new route puts critical food and water sources at risk.

Rose Whipple, who is attending the hearing as a member of the Youth Climate Intervenors, cited wild rice as just one crop that could be affected.

She also said Enbridge is taking the wrong approach by making a long-term investment in fossil fuels, which she worries will simply accelerate the rate of climate change.

“If they started to move toward green energy – energy that is more sustainable and will help the earth in a good way – they could definitely do what they’re doing,” Whipple said. “But not with oil.”

Enbridge, on the other hand, argues the line replacement is essential.

A representative for the company told state regulators on Tuesday that the current Line 3, built a half-century ago, is deteriorating at a rapid rate. In 2012, about 900 of the pipe joints were considered corroded; by 2030, that number could increase to more than 2,500.

“It’s getting worse and worse with time, and the numbers continue to grow,” the representative told the Public Utilities Commission. “Which is exactly why we’re here.”

Paul Eberth, the Enbridge project director for Line 3, said in an interview that the project will have a net benefit for the public and the economy. He pointed out that the $2 billion investment in Minnesota exceeds even the construction of U.S. Bank Stadium in downtown Minneapolis.

“And that will put a lot of people to work,” Eberth said. “That will have spin-off effects to restaurants, hotels and those working in the area.”

Enbridge said it intentionally plotted the new route so it would not specifically cross tribal land.

Still, “it’s going through their treaty territories,” Whipple noted, adding that the route will impact Native American water and food regardless of whether it crosses an actual reservation.

The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission must consider all of these arguments— and it will hear plenty more from both the company and project opponents next week as hearings continue. By the end of the month, the Public Utilities Commission could either approve the “certificate of need” and the route path, deny them outright or approve one or the other with some special modifications.

If it receives full approval, Enbridge has said it will start construction on the Line 3 Replacement Project as swiftly as it can.

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