Oil & Water:
A Public Forum About Oil Pipeline Across St. Croix Headwaters
We invite and encourage you to attend the upcoming public forum on May 14th in Spooner, WI.
The forum will offer you and the community the chance to learn about and discuss Enbridge Energy’s project to increase the amount of oil flowing through its Line 61 pipeline. When the upgrade is complete later this year, 1.2 million barrels (50 million gallons) of oil will flow through it each day.
The pipeline crosses Wisconsin diagonally, including Washburn and Douglas Counties. In that area, it passes under four rivers that constitute the headwaters of the federally-protected St. Croix River: the upper St. Croix, Totogatic, Eau Claire, and Namekagon Rivers. Risks to rivers are a concern after Enbridge’s 2010 spill in Michigan, which contaminated 36 miles of the Kalamazoo River, and two major spills in the past five years in Montana’s Yellowstone River.
A panel of experts will share information about the project, the rivers, and pipeline safety at the forum. The panelists include:
- Rebecca Craven, Pipeline Safety Trust
- Becky Haase, Enbridge Energy
- Patrick Miles, Dane County
- Elizabeth Ward, Wisconsin Sierra Club
- Monica Zachay, St. Croix River Association
Each panelist will give a short presentation during the first half of the event. A question-and-answer and discussion session moderated by SCRA executive director Deb Ryun will follow.
Local citizens, elected officials, government staff, first responders, business-owners, river users, and any other interested parties are encouraged to attend the forum.
Details
Line 61 Public Forum
May 14, 2015
7 p.m. (Doors open at 6 p.m.)
Spooner High School auditorium
801 Cty Hwy A
Spooner, WI 54801
The Line 61 public forum is sponsored by the St. Croix River Association, St. Croix 360, and the Washburn County Lakes and Rivers Association. Background information and links to recent news coverage is available at www.stcroix360.com/line61/.
