Line 5

For the second time in a year, the federal government is invoking a little-known 1977 energy treaty between Canada and the United States in an effort to prevent a federal court from shutting down the Line 5 pipeline.

It’s clear that decisions about Enbridge's Line 5 are not made in a vacuum. They have been heavily influenced by external lobbying efforts.

According to an expert analysis Enbridge submitted to a Wisconsin court, shutting down the 1,000-kilometre pipeline, which carries crude oil and natural gas liquids across Wisconsin and Michigan to Sarnia, Ont., would result in consumer price increases of less than one cent per gallon in the U.S.

White House officials, Capitol Hill lawmakers and the U.S. secretary of energy have all expressed "significant sympathy" for the plight of Canada's Line 5 pipeline, Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said on Thursday, May 12, 2022, after a day of meetings in the U.S. capital.