More Dirty, Dangerous Tar Sand Crude Coming Wisconsin's Way

[Updated Sunday, 2 AM.] While pictures of flaming oil train derailments have dominated the news of late, there is less awareness in our state about the record of a principal pipeline distributor of heavy, dirty and combustible Canadian tar sands crude oil and its expanding presence in Wisconsin.

Remember that it was an Enbridge pipeline break in the Kalamazoo River in Michigan that produced the most costly inland oil cleanup in American history.

Regrettably, the Journal Sentinel editorial board is on record supporting permission for Enbridge to greatly expand its pipeline capacity in Wisconsin, and now that expansion is up for a hearing Monday in Superior.

The hearing is under the auspices of Scott Walker's DNR.

Here is one summary of Enbridge's calamitous record of pipeline spills and resulting environmental damage, and a September, 2007 posting about the tar sands nightmare forecasted for Superior and the Great Lakes:

Count on tar sand crude oil from Alberta continuing to be a hot commodity, with the attendant political and environmental issues landing squarely in Superior and at the State Capitol, too.

Activist Erik Hansen sends more comprehensive information, below:

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The Wisconsin DNR is holding the one-and-only public hearing on permit, Monday May 5, at 10:30 AM, at the Superior Public Library, 1530 Tower Avenue.

Written comments are due by May 18 - - see the two URL's below for details and
background.

Enbridge, the Canadian pipeline company, is seeking a Wisconsin DNR permit to
expand its facility in Superior -- and TRIPLE the capacity of their line 61, which runs south from Superior to Delavan, WI, and on to Illinois.

Two web pages are up that detail the immediate Enbridge threat -- Wisconsin
Sierra Club and Madison 350.org -- URL's below.

http://wisconsin.sierraclub.org/Involve/Line61.asp

http://350madison.wordpress.com/tar-sands/

This is all tar sands crude oil related -- the tar sands promoters need a route to
saltwater to reach the global market.

A region-wide tar sands coalition is already contesting Enbridge's proposed line 67 expansion (which leads from Alberta to Superior), and Enbridge efforts to construct a maritime loading facility in Superior (i.e. construct an oil port to facilitate tar sands crude oil barge/tanker traffic on Lake Superior, other Great Lakes). 

Again: the only public hearing at this time on the line 61 proposal is at Superior library
10:30 AM, Monday May 5, (details on 350 page) 

We are asking for further hearings in southern WI and a full Environmental Assessment.

Below are several of Hansen's op-eds for general background on the tar sands threat to Lake Superior and our region.

http://www.midwestenergynews.com/2014/04/15/commentary-tar-sands-expansion-poses-risk-to-great-lakes/

http://www.jsonline.com/news/opinion/tar-sands-oil-expansion-is-risky-b99244270z1-254982021.html

http://www.jsonline.com/news/opinion/wisconsin-waters-threatened-by-tar-sands-crude-oil-expansion-b9944286z1-214318651.html
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Further information on regional campaign against Enbridge/Tar Sands:

http://www.honorearth.org/action_alert_stop_the_sandpiper
http://www.mn350.org/alberta-clipper-minnesotas-tar-sands-development-fight/
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