Michigan governor seeks shutdown of Great Lakes oil pipeline

By JOHN FLESHER AP Environmental Writer

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is taking legal action to force the shutdown of a pipeline that carries oil beneath the channel linking Lake Michigan and Lake Huron.

Whitmer's office notified Enbridge Inc. on Friday that it will revoke the easement granted in 1953 that allowed the Canadian company to run its Line 5 across the Straits of Mackinac.

Her legal counsel says the move results from a persistent pattern of noncompliance with conditions for safely operating the line. Michigan's attorney general filed a lawsuit to carry out Whitmer's order to stop the flow of oil within 180 days.

Enbridge says there is "no credible basis" for Whitmer's action.