Michigan, United States  – On September 9, 2026, Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Director Phil Roos of the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) announced the halting of construction on Enbridge’s proposed Line 5 oil tunnel project below the Straits of Mackinac to thoroughly scrutinize the consequences and alternatives of the project. The state agency will conduct a deeper review of the tunnel project permits, in accordance with the precedent set by the Michigan Supreme Court overturning the Michigan Public Service Commission’s tunnel permits on July 31, which affirmed that Michigan must fully uphold its environmental responsibilities and its obligations under the public trust doctrine when considering the proposed Line 5 tunnel.

Governor Whitmer also called for Enbridge to immediately seek alternative plans that would remove oil from the Straits of Mackinac for both the existing dual pipelines and the tunnel project, in a letter to the company’s President and CEO, Gregory Ebel. Spilled oil or drilling fluid in the Straits of Mackinac would catastrophically impact communities and local economies that rely on the Great Lakes ecosystem, a source of clean drinking water for more than 40 million people. The continued operation of the outdated Line 5 pipeline threatens the environmental and cultural health of the region, tribal sovereignty, and the critical Great Lakes ecosystem — which holds 20% of the world’s surface fresh water.

This victorious decision provides another critical opportunity for Tribal Nations and allies to defend Treaty rights, protect the Great Lakes, and challenge the proposed Line 5 tunnel.

In a statement to Earthjustice, Bay Mills Indian Community President Whitney Gravelle said: "For generations, we have warned about the danger Line 5 poses to the Straits of Mackinac and the catastrophic consequences a spill could have for our waters, our fisheries, and our way of life. Today’s action is an important step, and the right step by the State of Michigan, but Tribal Nations must be listened to. Our treaty rights are not an afterthought, and our voices should not only be heard when it is convenient. The Straits are our homeland, not a corridor for a foreign oil company. We do not own the Great Lakes. We are borrowing them from future generations, and it is our responsibility to return them whole. That means moving beyond Line 5 and toward safer alternatives that do not gamble with the heart of the Great Lakes. Tribal Nations will continue to stand together until these waters are protected.”

Today’s announcement in Michigan comes two weeks after the largest reported oil and gas spill in Wisconsin occurred at Enbridge’s Line 5 in the neighboring state. On August 25, 31,000 barrels, or 1.3 million gallons, of natural gas liquids were released after a parked, unoccupied semi-truck rolled into and struck the pipeline. In response, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources issued a formal request for all construction work on Enbridge’s Line 5 reroute project to come to a halt.

The disaster in Wisconsin is part of Enbridge’s long history of pipeline spills, including the largest on-land oil spill in U.S. history and a spill of up to 9,000 gallons of drilling fluid into a sensitive Minnesota wetland in 2021. For this reason, Indigenous leaders, local communities, and environmental groups have long warned of the serious risks that Line 5 spills pose to the local ecosystems and water sources in the Great Lakes, which provide one-fifth of the world’s fresh surface water. Operating 23 years past its engineered lifespan, Line 5 has leaked more than 30 times, releasing over 1 million gallons of oil.

From the catastrophic natural gas liquids spill in Wisconsin to the dangerous proposed tunnel beneath the Straits of Mackinac, the continued operation and expansion of the outdated Line 5 pipeline threatens the biodiverse ecosystem of the Great Lakes, Tribal sovereignty, and the drinking water for more than 40 million people.

“Today, Michigan’s decision is a win for the water and the land of the Great Lakes, and affirms the serious threats that Line 5 poses to the environment, the community of over 40 million people reliant on the Great Lakes for water, and Tribal sovereignty, which Indigenous nations have voiced for decades in their fight to protect the Straits of Mackinac and the Great Lakes ecosystem. The state must now follow through on this first step and continue to show us that its highest priority is to respect Tribal sovereignty, protect these sacred waters and vital ecosystems, and ensure the health and safety of our communities," stated Osprey Orielle Lake, Executive Director of the Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN). The Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN) celebrates this important step in the battle to get oil out of the Great Lakes and continues to stand in unwavering support and solidarity with Indigenous women leaders and frontline communities fighting to protect this essential ecosystem.