Minnesota Environmentalists Protest Against Harmful Pipeline Project

MOSCOW, December 19 (Sputnik) – About 40 environmental protesters marched to the office of Minnesota governor in the city of St. Paul Thursday to ask the official to act after a local commission refused to review the potential environmental impact of a future pipeline expansion project, the Dickinson Press reported.

“We are asking for Gov. [Mark] Dayton to stand up for due process,” one of the activists from environmental group MN350 said, as quoted by the newspaper, stressing that the group hopes for the Minnesota governor’s support. The group of protesters also demanded stricter compliance with US federal regulations on oil pipelines.

The environmental group believes that the Public Utilities Commission decision to not reconsider a permit granted to Canada-based Enbridge for a pipeline across northern Minnesota," opens the door ever wider for the dirtiest oil on the planet to be forced out of the ground," according to the group's statement.

The commission decided late August to approve the Enbridge Line 67 pipeline expansion. The pipeline would boost the volume of oil transported from Alberta, Canada to Superior, Wisconsin, from 450,000 barrels per day to 800,000 barrels per day in a pump system upgrade, according to the Dickinson Press.

Last week, Minnesota environmental groups filed suit in state district court asking for a broader environmental review for the proposed Enbridge oil pipeline, according to local media. The groups believe the permit for the pipeline across northern Minnesota was illegal. Environmentalists also fear the pipeline, which will pass through national and state park wilderness areas, will harm numerous rivers, wetlands and lakes in the area.

Enbridge has been responsible for several oil spills on Canadian and US territory. The largest oil spill happened in 2010 in Michigan, with over 20,000 barrels of oil contaminating a large area and leaking into the Kalamazoo River.