Enbridge has spilled at least 10,000 gallons of drilling mud into MN streams, wetlands, and uplands, MPCA says

Enbridge has had at least 28 “frac-outs” while tunneling under Minnesota streams and wetlands to install its Line 3 tar sands pipeline. These have released between 10,000 and 13,000 gallons of “drilling mud,” according to data released by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA).

The drilling process requires using a special drilling mud that helps lubricate and cool the drill bit. The mud is under pressure and can get forced into subsurface soil cracks and pushed to the surface. This is called a frac-out. They can happen on land, in wetlands and in rivers and streams.

Line 3 drilling under the Mississippi River in Aitkin County resulted in the largest single spill, estimated between 6,000 and 9,000 gallons. It occurred in a wetland about a quarter-mile from the river, the MPCA said.

Treaty People Walk for Water Aug. 7-25, Gazelka puts undue influence on MPCA to approve Line 3, and more

In this blog:

• Treaty People Walk for Water, Aug. 7-25
• Gazelka crosses line in Line 3 lobbying
• What we know, and don’t know, about Enbridge’s drilling mud and frac-outs
• MPCA not providing information on Line 3 frac-outs
• Comments critical of the MPCA disappear from the MPCA’s Facebook Page.
• Concerns raised that a federal bill gives “blank check” to crack down on pipeline protesters

Mother Earth: ‘Is there a doctor in the house?’

MPCA not living up to its mission to ‘protect and improve’ the environment

I’ve been thinking recently about comparisons between the medical and environmental protection professions.

The medical profession has gone through a significant patient care evolution in my lifetime. It used to be patients just did what the doctor said. If you had rheumatoid arthritis, you took the drugs the doctor told you to take, period. Today, there’s online medical resources and on-line support groups that help people understand their illnesses. People can crowdsource alternative treatments. Then can ask their doctors for more information or a different approach. It’s been a gradual transition, but the medical community is adapting.

Environmental protection professionals — those working for government regulators charged with protecting and healing Mother Earth — haven’t made a similar transition. They still seem to see themselves as the “experts.” Yet more and more ordinary people are getting knowledgeable about very technical environmental issues, such as crude oil pipeline construction and climate damage. They have become patient advocates for the planet. Yet regulatory agencies don’t seem to want to listen to or collaborate with the public who care deeply about these issues.

As Enbridge races to finish Line 3 construction, more suspected frac-outs

Water Protector Shanai Matteson points to the Willow River frac-out. Screengrab from Honor the Earth video.

On July 6, water protectors found an Enbridge Line 3 frac-out at the Willow River.

On Monday, Honor the Earth reported a suspected Line 3 frac-out at the Shell River. [Update July 22: The MPCA says there was no frac-out on the shell. It did report that Enbridge has had frac-outs at nine different construction sites. Updated blog coming soon.]

Today, the Indigenous Environmental Network reported a suspected Line 3 frac-out near the Mississippi headwaters. (Video here.)

Details of the frac-outs are still coming in.

It’s possible to see frac-outs on the surface of rivers and wetlands. There could be other frac-outs below the surface that remain unseen.

How many frac-outs will it take for state regulators to require something different, or do they dismiss frac-outs as an acceptable environmental cost?

An Executive Order that wasn’t, Capitol Rally to oppose Line 3 dewatering, Shell River Rally, and more

In this blog:

• The Executive Order that wasn’t
• White Earth pushes against Line 3 dewatering increases, Capitol rally Wednesday at 3 p.m.
• Women for the Rivers Rally at Shell River Thursday, noon-3 p.m., with V and Marisa Tomei
• Last push for Line 3 monitors; we need eyes on the Horizontal Directional Drilling sites