Opinion: Pipeline Construction Should Be Halted
What would you do to ensure you had clean water to drink?
People in Minnesota ask themselves this question every day. Now, they are working to ensure their continued access to clean water by protesting the installation of the new Line 3 pipeline by Canadian pipeline and gas company Enbridge.
The original Line 3 pipeline was constructed in 1961. The steel has since corroded in multiple places, resulting in ruptures and spills. A new replacement pipeline is under construction to carry crude oil from Edmonton, Alberta to Superior, Wisconsin. It crosses multiple Native American reservations and endangers hundreds of bodies of water including the Mississippi River and Lake Superior.
Since the start of construction in November 2020, Native Americans have turned their focus on protesting Line 3. Police response to the protesters has raised concerns among many due to connections between law enforcement and Enbridge.
Enbridge pays the salaries of police officers and helps cover their operating costs. While this action is mandated by Minnesota utility regulators, the potential conflict of interest is cause for concern, with some questioning the use of force by police brutality. Protestors, who call themselves water protectors, have been on the brunt end of pepper spraying, firing rubber bullets and reported mistreatment in jails.
Line 3 issues and protests mostly escape national attention, but the internet enables water protectors to speak to hundreds of thousands of people.
“More than 700 [arrests]. And police HAVE used rubber bullet, mace, and as of late, ‘pain compliance’ on us,” Native American activist Tara Houska, who is part of the Ojibwe tribe, said in a tweet. “I know, because I’m one of them.”
The Line is opposed by the native people in its path and is therefore infringing on the sovereignty guaranteed to tribal nations by the U.S. Constitution and upheld by the Supreme Court.
The pipeline pierces through the heart of Anishinaabe territory and Ojibwe treaty lands, putting critical natural, cultural and economic resources at risk, which violates treaty rights.
According to Honor the Earth, the fisheries in the region provide $7.2 billion annually with nearly 50,000 jobs. Wild rice beds are also in danger — both during construction and from potential leaks. Environmental disasters from the pipeline would disproportionately affect indigenous livelihoods based on these industries alone.
In the past 50 years, at least 44 major oil spills contaminated U.S. waters. Thousands of smaller spills happen every year and even relatively small amounts of oil can exact significant environmental harm. A powerful visual example of a disastrous spill is the viral “eye of fire” video showing the Gulf of Mexico’s surface churning with burning oil.
All pipelines leak at some point, and Line 3 will be no exception. Water protectors see the gravity of future impacts on their lives and are willing to do everything they can to prevent Enbridge from building Line 3. If their efforts fail, the consequences of the pipeline will have dire consequences for Indigenous people and the environment.
Locklear is an opinion writer. Follow him on Twitter @rob_locklear