Supreme Court gives Michigan a win in pipeline case

Key Points:

• The Supreme Court unanimously ruled that Michigan's lawsuit to shut down a section of Enbridge's Line 5 pipeline under the Straits of Mackinac will remain in state court, as Enbridge missed the deadline to move the case to federal court.
• Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel sued to void the easement allowing the pipeline's operation due to environmental concerns, including gaps in protective coating and damage from a boat anchor, raising fears of a catastrophic spill.
• Enbridge has faced multiple legal challenges, including a federal lawsuit over Michigan's revocation of the pipeline easement and a separate dispute in Wisconsin regarding pipeline rerouting around a Native American reservation.
• The company is pursuing permits to encase the pipeline section in a protective tunnel, but environmental groups and Michigan tribes have filed lawsuits to void these permits, with the state Supreme Court currently reviewing the case.
• Regulatory approvals are still pending from federal and state agencies, and ongoing litigation highlights the complex, multi-jurisdictional conflicts surrounding the aging pipeline's future.