Wall weighs in with Enbridge Line 5 battle going to court

The Canadian government is stepping in to ensure a pipeline that carries 500,000 barrels of oil a day is not shut down.

This comes after Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer requested the Enbridge Line 5 pipeline be shut down over concerns about environmental safety.

The pipeline carries product from Western Canada through Wisconsin and then Michigan before it ends up in Ontario and Quebec.

Former Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall spoke to Gormley on Monday and says he found it upsetting it took this potential shutdown for the federal government to take a defensive stance on Canadian oil.

“It took the threat of the shutdown significantly impacting our central Canadian fellow citizens to get the federal government to find interest in pipelines,” Wall said. “Maybe even the spectre of a shutdown will help convince voters in central Canada to demand something different from federal parties in terms of their energy policy.

“Any protracted shutdown is not good for the industry and the timing is not great.”

The Government of Canada filed an amicus brief in the court case over the line, saying shutting it down could do massive and possibly permanent harm to Canada’s economy and energy security.

Saskatchewan Minister of Energy and Resources Bronwyn Eyre said Wednesday the potential shutdown would significantly harm the province’s economy.

“For Saskatchewan, (the line shutting down) would have a very detrimental impact (with) terrible timing,” Eyre said. “It’s a terrible thing that it has come to this.

“We were told for many months to expect that this was infrastructure that was in the ground and highly unlikely, and here we are. So (it’s) not good news for Saskatchewan producers or for Canada.”

The energy company based out of Calgary has claimed Michigan has no authority to enforce a shutdown and that the company will only shut down the pipeline if ordered to by a federal court.