Contact: info@wijobsandenergy.com
Dozens of supporters representing Wisconsin labor, business, and agriculture to attend public hearing in Ashland today.
ASHLAND, Wis – A diverse coalition of Wisconsinites representing the state’s labor, business, and agricultural sectors will be in Ashland today to voice their support of the proposed Line 5 relocation project to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The proposed Line 5 relocation project in Ashland, Bayfield and Iron Counties, has broad support among Wisconsinites who understand the pipeline is the safest and most efficient way to move the energy our state and region depends on.
The Line 5 relocation project, which is estimated to create over 700 Wisconsin union construction jobs and pump $135 million into the local economy, is currently being reviewed by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. According to public comments received by the Wisconsin DNR, Wisconsinites approve of the project by greater than a 2-to-1 margin.
“The Line 5 relocation has not only been designed to create the least environmental impact as possible, but it will be built by the best trained and safest union workforce on earth, using the most advanced techniques and technologies available,” said executive director of the Wisconsin Building Trades Council Emily Pritzkow. “We are excited to put 700 union construction workers to work on this important project.”
A public comment submitted to the DNR by major propane supplier Plains Midstream sent a dire warning for the entire Midwest that a rejection of the Line 5 relocation project could send Wisconsin and other states into a State of Emergency due to propane shortages as Line 5 is a key supplier of the natural gas liquids that are needed to produce propane.
“The Line 5 relocation not only satisfies the request by the Bad River Tribe to relocate Line 5 off their reservation, but it ensures access to the natural gas liquids needed to meet the propane demand in northern Wisconsin and our entire region,” said Cheryl Lytle, executive director of the Wisconsin Propane Gas Association. “With about 280,000 Wisconsin households depending on propane for heat, and countless farms and small businesses requiring propane to dry crops, power machinery, heat water, and produce the food and goods that move our economy, it is imperative that the Line 5 relocation project be approved and built without further delay.”
Wisconsin Farm Bureau President Brad Olson added, “Wisconsin famers depend on the propane, gas and diesel made possible by Line 5. Without it, energy prices will increase, and propane supplies will become critically low, and Wisconsin farmers – and the food they supply – would be put in jeopardy.”
Line 5 moves roughly 540,000 barrels of crude oil and natural gas liquids each day. These unrefined products get sent to refineries in the region – where they are turned into propane, gas, diesel and jet fuel, which is then distributed to consumers, farms and businesses throughout Wisconsin, the Midwest and eastern Canada. If Line 5 were shut down, to fill the infrastructure gap, it is estimated 2,100 tanker trucks would need to drive through Ashland, Wisconsin, on U.S. Highway 2 each day.
“Wisconsin businesses and manufacturers depend on reliable and affordable energy to create jobs and produce the goods and services our state needs to grow and thrive,” stated Scott Suder, president of the Wisconsin Paper Council. “The continued operation of Line 5 is the safest and most efficient way to continue to move the energy our entire region needs.”
In addition to being the safest way to carry Wisconsin’s critical energy supply, an independent economic impact study estimated the Line 5 relocation project would add $135 million to Wisconsin’s economic output, increase state tax revenues by millions and support more than 1,000 jobs in the State of Wisconsin. Line 5’s owner, Enbridge, has signed a letter of intent with Wisconsin-based Michels Pipeline, Inc. as the mainline contractor for the project, and a Project Labor Agreement has been signed with the Laborers International Union of North America, International Union of Operating Engineers, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, and United Association of Plumbers and Pipefitters.
###
The Wisconsin Jobs and Energy Coalition is a coalition of Wisconsinites working together to ensure safe, affordable, and reliable energy while creating jobs and generating economic growth in Wisconsin. Members include dozens of diverse organizations and businesses representing Wisconsin’s workers, manufacturing, agriculture, and communities. Learn more at: https://wijobsandenergy.com/.
