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Michigan Oil Spill — Why Now?
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Michigan Oil Spill

by Bryan

As a Canadian company is involved, at least the CBC is covering it: Enbridge steps up Michigan oil cleanup

Canadian energy distributor Enbridge was working Wednesday to contain more than three million litres [792,500 gallons or 18,870 barrels] of oil that leaked from one of its pipelines in southern Michigan, damaging water and wildlife in the Kalamazoo River.

The 41-year-old pipeline belonging to the Calgary-based company usually carries about 30 million litres of oil daily to Sarnia, Ont., from Griffith, Ind.

Enbridge said Wednesday it is doubling its work force on the containment and cleanup effort in affected areas, including the Kalamazoo, which is one of the state’s major waterways and empties into Lake Michigan.

About 300 employees and contractors are trying to contain the spill, and the company is adding more barricades in nearby waterways to help contain the leaked crude, officials said.

Instead of oil-soaked pelicans, they have a picture of an oil-soaked Canada goose.

So, it is vital to drill in the Gulf of Mexico to provide “energy independence” for the US as we are shipping crude oil from Indiana to Canada and have done for decades.

The only good news it that it didn’t happen in the Spring, which is prime time for nesting and spawning.

2 comments

1 Kryten42 { 07.31.10 at 8:38 am }

Update, from TP:

Michigan Oil Spill Damages Wildlife, Forces Residents To Evacuate

If anything positive comes from this, it will be that (maybe) people will finally realize how dangerous oil is, and how much BP and others including the Gov have been lying about the Gulf disaster. *shrug*

This is not the first failure of Enbridge Inc., the Canadian energy company responsible for the spill. Michigan Messenger’s Todd Heywood reports that, “documents from the agency show that Enbridge Energy pipelines have leaked oil on 12 different occasions in Michigan since 2002.” Furthermore, documents obtained by the Detroit Free Press and other news outlets indicate Enbridge Inc. was “notified twice this year of potential problems involving old pipe prone to rupturing and an inadequate system for monitoring internal corrosion.” While this is one of the biggest threats to a pipeline, it is currently unclear whether Enbridge addressed the notices or if “the concerns played any role in the leak.”

Although Michigan’s spill represents only 32 percent of the amount of oil spilled per day in the ongoing BP oil disaster, the environmental implications of the leak are already clear. Not only has wildlife — including geese and muskrats — been coated in oil, but fears also remain high that the oil will contaminate local water supplies. The Calhoun County Health Department has advised residents around the area of the Kalamazoo River oil spill to evacuate, due to “‘higher than acceptable levels of benzene’ in air quality studies.” Benzene, notes the press release from the health department, is a “highly flammable” organic chemical that can lead to a series of symptoms from dizziness to tremors. The long-term effects of benzene exposure, however, are more dire and are linked to excessive bleeding and even cancer in human beings. Enbridge has agreed to reimburse affected families for the cost of hotel stays.

2 Bryan { 07.31.10 at 9:13 pm }

If nothing else, the Canadian company seems to have figured out that it had better take care of things quickly, or it will be in the same mess that BP finds itself. Since Michigan doesn’t profit from this pipeline, they are not apt to be open to any “compromise” regarding taking care of it.

It looks like they have already contained it and are already sucking up oil, which is good news for the area.