Good evening fellow climate activists,

Over the last couple of years, 350 Chicago has opposed the Line 5 oil and gas pipeline currently passing through the Mackinac straits of Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. We made it a key aspect of our People vs. Fossil Fuels campaign last year.

If the 70-year old pipeline with a 50-year life span were to burst, the drinking water of millions would be jeopardized. Our friends in Wisconsin and Michigan have been fighting hard to shut it down and they could use our help. It literally takes a couple of minutes to make your voice heard.

Please contact the White House and tell President Biden to shut down Line 5 and stop the permitting of its replacement. See details below.

Time sensitive action alert to protect Tribal Sovereignty and our water/communities here in the Great Lakes. Please consider taking two minutes before EOD tomorrow to submit comments to the Biden Administration! Also, it would be amazing if you could circulate this with folks in your community/network .

Background:

• Line 5 is an old pipeline with lots of operational/structural concerns. Built in 1953, operated by Enbridge (Canadian oil company) through the Great Lakes region.
• Line 5 has been operating in the land of the Bad River Band of the Chippewa without their consent for over 10 years.
• Bad River sued Enbridge – case is currently being heard in federal court.
• If Enbridge wins, it would set legal precedent for oil & gas companies to operate their infrastructure in tribal lands without their consent, which would be a huge blow to tribal sovereignty—not just for Bad River, but also for indigenous communities around the United States.  
• The Biden administration was asked to deliver a brief to the courts weighing in on this issue, which is due April 8 (next Monday).
• According to insiders, we have until this Friday am (April 5) at the absolute latest to reach the administration to help sway the brief.
• More background

Actions to Take:

1. Fill out this petition from Oil & Water Don’t Mix, a former Patagonia Chicago grantee.
2. Submit a comment to President Biden. Below are talking points from our local contacts at National Wildlife Federation & Earth Justice that you can use:

Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline has illegally trespassed for over a decade on the Bad River Band’s Reservation on the shores of Lake Superior in Wisconsin. Erosion has brought the Bad River to within 11 feet of the pipeline, making it highly vulnerable to spring floods, which could rupture the pipeline, poison the Bad River, destroy the Band’s way of life, and devastate Lake Superior. It is risking the lives and livelihoods of millions of citizens who rely on that magnificent Lake for drinking water, recreation, and the economy.

A lower federal court ordered Enbridge to stop trespassing by removing Line 5 from the reservation by June of 2026—earlier if flooding exposes more of the pipeline. But Enbridge has appealed that order, and at the request of the appeals court, your Administration will file a legal brief stating your position in the case by April 8.

I strongly urge your Administration to file a brief that supports the Bad River Band by arguing that Enbridge must remove Line 5 from the reservation no later than the trial court’s deadline of June 2026, and earlier if flooding creates an emergency threat of a rupture. This administration must protect our water and act on climate change. Please act today.

In solidarity,

Team 350 Chicago