Bay Mills Indian Community – On Monday, May 10, 2021, Bay Mills Indian Community’s Executive Council passed a resolution that banishes Enbridge Energy, Inc.’s Line 5 dual pipelines from the BMIC reservation and the lands and waters of their ceded territory—including the Straits of Mackinac.
As part of the Treaty of 1836, BMIC reserved for all time the right to fish, hunt, and gather in the ceded land and waters of the state of Michigan—including the ceded waters of Lake Superior, Huron, and Michigan, which includes the Straits of Mackinac.
Banishment is not a practice taken lightly by tribal government. Banishment is a traditional, historical, and customary form of tribal law that has existed since time immemorial and is only exercised by the tribe when egregious acts and misconduct have harmed tribal citizens, treaty rights, territories, and resources.
“Enbridge’s continued harm to our treaty rights, our environment, our history, our citizens, and our culture, is a prime example of how banishment should be used,” said President Whitney Gravelle of the Bay Mills Executive Council. “Banishment is a permanent and final action that is used to protect all that we hold dear.
As part of the banishment resolution, BMIC’s Executive Council requests that any regulatory body with oversight authority, to enforce the banishment. This includes the Chippewa Ottawa Resource Authority, Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, Little River Band of Ottawa Indians, Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians, Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, the State of Michigan, and the United States.
“Enbridge has weaponized our traditional culture as a way to influence issues around Line 5, and while the pipeline segment beneath the Straits has thankfully not burst. In 1999, the pipeline leaked 226,000 gallons of crude and natural gas liquid, forcing 500 residents to evacuate,” added Gravelle. “Line 5 has spilled 33 times since 1968, leaking over 1.1 million gallons of oil. And those are just the documented spills.”
In November, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer ordered Enbridge to cease operations by May 12, revoking the easement it needs to operate. Enbridge maintains the State of Michigan does not have the authority to make such as request and has indicated they will not comply with the order. The dispute over the easement revocation remains in federal court, State of Michigan and Michigan Department of Natural Resource v. Enbridge Energy, where Bay Mills Indian Community also filed an amicus brief supporting remand to state court.
BMIC, in partnership with Earthjustice and the Native American Rights Fund, has also challenged a permit issued to Enbridge Energy by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy that would allow Enbridge to build a massive tunnel beneath the Straits of Mackinac to house a new segment of its Line 5 pipeline.
Read more about the Bay Mills Indian Community’s fight to protect their homelands →
The post Bay Mills Bans Enbridge Pipeline from the Straits of Mackinac appeared first on Native American Rights Fund.
Bay Mills Indian Community – On Monday, May 10, 2021, Bay Mills Indian Community’s Executive Council passed a resolution that banishes Enbridge Energy, Inc.’s Line 5 dual pipelines from the BMIC reservation and the lands and waters of their ceded territory—including the Straits of Mackinac.
As part of the Treaty of 1836, BMIC reserved for all time the right to fish, hunt, and gather in the ceded land and waters of the state of Michigan—including the ceded waters of Lake Superior, Huron, and Michigan, which includes the Straits of Mackinac.
Banishment is not a practice taken lightly by tribal government. Banishment is a traditional, historical, and customary form of tribal law that has existed since time immemorial and is only exercised by the tribe when egregious acts and misconduct have harmed tribal citizens, treaty rights, territories, and resources.
“Enbridge’s continued harm to our treaty rights, our environment, our history, our citizens, and our culture, is a prime example of how banishment should be used,” said President Whitney Gravelle of the Bay Mills Executive Council. “Banishment is a permanent and final action that is used to protect all that we hold dear.
As part of the banishment resolution, BMIC’s Executive Council requests that any regulatory body with oversight authority, to enforce the banishment. This includes the Chippewa Ottawa Resource Authority, Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, Little River Band of Ottawa Indians, Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians, Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, the State of Michigan, and the United States.
“Enbridge has weaponized our traditional culture as a way to influence issues around Line 5, and while the pipeline segment beneath the Straits has thankfully not burst. In 1999, the pipeline leaked 226,000 gallons of crude and natural gas liquid, forcing 500 residents to evacuate,” added Gravelle. “Line 5 has spilled 33 times since 1968, leaking over 1.1 million gallons of oil. And those are just the documented spills.”
In November, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer ordered Enbridge to cease operations by May 12, revoking the easement it needs to operate. Enbridge maintains the State of Michigan does not have the authority to make such as request and has indicated they will not comply with the order. The dispute over the easement revocation remains in federal court, State of Michigan and Michigan Department of Natural Resource v. Enbridge Energy, where Bay Mills Indian Community also filed an amicus brief supporting remand to state court.
BMIC, in partnership with Earthjustice and the Native American Rights Fund, has also challenged a permit issued to Enbridge Energy by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy that would allow Enbridge to build a massive tunnel beneath the Straits of Mackinac to house a new segment of its Line 5 pipeline.
Read more about the Bay Mills Indian Community’s fight to protect their homelands →
The post Bay Mills Bans Enbridge Pipeline from the Straits of Mackinac appeared first on Native American Rights Fund.