Oil & Water Don't Mix ➡️

Line 5: A Timeline of a Ticking Bomb

Line 5 has already released over 1 million gallons, and crossing over two of the Great Lakes the aging pipeline is a disaster waiting to happen. Click to read a timeline of major Line 5 events, from construction over 70 years ago to present day.
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Oil & Water Don't Mix: Keep OIl Out of the Great Lakes

The Oil & Water Don't Mix coalition was formed to address the threat to our climate and Great Lakes from the aged, dangerous Line 5 pipeline and associated proposed tunnel project.  Together, we saw a need to organize on behalf of Michiganders and all those that value and use the Great Lakes - for our freshwater future, not fossil fuel profit.

Clean Water Action sits on the steering committee of Oil & Water Don't Mix, which includes over 75 organizations working to shut down the flow of oil in the Great Lakes alongside supporters from the business community, tribal communities, faith communities, local governments, and individuals. Coalition members come from all walks of life with areas of focus including concerns about water quality, Indigenous rights, climate change, pollution, sustainable economies, protecting sporting, commerce, and tourism, and protecting the jobs that are dependent on our water and our Pure Michigan way of life.

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Actions, Events, and Updates

Participants at the 2019 Event on Mackinac Island
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No Oil Tunnel Gathering on Mackinac Island

May 29, 2025 | Mackinac Island, MI
Each year, business and political leaders from around the state gather for the Detroit Area Chamber Mackinac Policy Conference on Mackinac Island. Our window to prevent a disastrous new fossil fuel infrastructure through the heart of the Great Lakes is closing. Decision-makers need to hear from the public about the dangers of the proposed tunnel for the Enbridge Line 5 pipeline. Add your voice!
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End of the Line: Great Lakes Over Big Oil | Traverse City & Online

June 4, 2025 | Traverse City, MI
Please join us for an in-person and live-streamed event on June 4th, 2025. Together, we’ll hear from key experts—like international tunnel expert Brian O’Mara—about the latest on Line 5, and learn how to take action at this critical moment. The federal administration has fast-tracked the Line 5 tunnel permit, and your voice is more important now than ever!
End of the Line: Great Lakes Over Big Oil
MI staff posing with "Taking Back Our Power" signs
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Working To Keep The Great Lakes State Great: Michigan 2024 In Review

December 6, 2024 | By Sean McBrearty
Together we will walk the path ahead and prove that a grassroots struggle that builds power from the bottom up is essential to making progress on the issues that matter most. As we prepare for 2025 and the critical fights ahead, I take courage in knowing that we can count on your support, and I’m thankful to be in this fight with you.
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On The Ground In Michigan

November 5, 2024 | By Sean McBrearty
In an election that will be decided by who shows up to vote, the work that we do at Clean Water Action truly matters. Not only what we do in election season, but what we do year-round, educating our members and the public about critical issues and engaging more people in the democratic process.
Holding up several Michigan "I Voted" Stickers

Line 5 News

Shut Down Line 5 Pipeline sign held on a boat in the Mackinac Straits between Lake Michigan and Lake Huron

Oil & Water Don't Mix Responds to Michigan Public Service Commission Decision on Line 5 Tunnel Permit

A federal court ruled on June 16th that Enbridge's Line 5 pipeline is in trespass on the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa reservation and that it constitutes a public nuisance by posing an imminent threat of rupture that could devastate the Band’s drinking water, plants and wildlife, and the region’s economy. The court required a segment of the Line 5 pipeline to be shut down within three years. Enbridge's response of an appeal and proposal to re-route the pipeline does not protect the Band, their treaty-reserved territory, or the Great Lakes from the threat of Line 5.
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Shut Down Line 5 banner from Wisconsin Protest including "No Tunnel" "Protect Our Water", and Indigenous activists

Line 5: Tribal Nations and Advocacy Groups Respond as Enbridge Appeals Shutdown Order

A federal court ruled on June 16th that Enbridge's Line 5 pipeline is in trespass on the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa reservation and that it constitutes a public nuisance by posing an imminent threat of rupture that could devastate the Band’s drinking water, plants and wildlife, and the region’s economy. The court required a segment of the Line 5 pipeline to be shut down within three years. Enbridge's response of an appeal and proposal to re-route the pipeline does not protect the Band, their treaty-reserved territory, or the Great Lakes from the threat of Line 5.
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map via University of Michigan
Press Release

Citizens Groups Applaud MI Attorney General’s Appeal in Line 5 Legal Case

"Every day this outdated 1950s crude oil pipeline is in the Great Lakes is a day when beautiful Lake Michigan could end up being a disaster zone. Delay is not our friend and this legal development moves us closer to a decision."
Shut Down the Line 5 Pipeline
Press Release

MI Propane Plan Proves that Michigan Doesn’t Need Line 5

For years, Enbridge and their allies have been spending millions of dollars to scare Michigan residents and create a fiction that the sky will fall and people will freeze without Line 5. Governor Whitmer’s team has proved them wrong once again.
Shut Down Line 5 flotilla protest assembling under the Mackinac Bridge
Press Release

Clean Water Action Applauds Governor Whitmer’s Action to Shut Down Line 5

After over a year-long review, the Department of Natural Resources has discovered many incurable violations to the 1953 easement that allows Enbridge to operate Line 5 in the Straits of Mackinac. We applaud the Governor’s actions to protect Michigan residents and our public trust resources by revoking the 1953 easement and shutting down the Line 5 pipeline.
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