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Home › Projects
Line 3 Pipeline Replacement Project (L3RP) United States
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This profile is a priority campaign target

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Created on: 2017-06-13 14:31:40
Last update: 2020-12-24 00:00:00

Contact:

climate@banktrack.org


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The new Line 3 Pipeline would transport oil from Canada's tar sands. Photo: Lou Gold via Flickr (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Sectors Pipeline Transportation of Crude Oil
Location
Status
Planning
Design
Agreement
Construction
Operation
Closure
Decommission
Website https://www.enbridge.com/projects-and-infrastructure/projects/line-3-replacement-program-canada

About Line 3 Pipeline Replacement Project (L3RP)

Enbridge’s Line 3 Pipeline Replacement Project is a proposal for a new pipeline that would cover more than 1,000 miles from Hardisty, Alberta, to Superior, Wisconsin, transporting an average of 760,000 barrels of crude oil from the Alberta tar sands each day, with capacity for 844,000 barrels per day. The project is estimated to cost CAD 5.3 billion, making it Enbridge’s largest project to date. 

Enbridge intends to abandon its existing Line 3 pipeline if it is able to complete its new Line 3, leaving the corroding pipe in the ground and a lasting legacy of contamination. The replacement Line 3 would take a brand new route. This path cuts through pristine wetlands and watersheds in northern Minnesota, passing through the headwaters of the Mississippi River to the shores of Lake Superior, through the heart of Minnesota’s lake country and some of the largest and most productive wild rice beds in the world. 

Construction on the Line 3 replacement is already underway on a 14-mile stretch of the pipeline from the Minnesota line to Superior, Wisconsin. Construction on the Alberta and Saskatchewan portions of the pipeline have already been completed.

Latest developments

Construction on Line 3 replacement begins

2020-12-07 00:00:00

Minnesota Pollution Control Agency approves permits for Line 3 tar sands pipeline

2020-11-12 00:00:00

Why this profile?

Enbridge's new Line 3 Pipeline threatens the environment by expanding access to dirty tar sands oil, while crossing important eco-systems, including forests and wetlands in Minnesota and the Great Lakes.

What must happen

Bank financing for tar sands pipelines, either through project finance or through credit facilities like those being provided to Enbridge, directly supports tar sands expansion, since these pipelines enable tar sands companies to move produce and transport much more crude oil.

Banks should avoid ​arranging ​or​ ​renew​ing ​business​ ​relationships,​ ​including corporate​ ​level​ ​finance​ ​and​ ​revolving​ ​credit,​ ​with​ ​Enbridge​ ​​and​ ​its​ ​subsidiaries,​ ​until it​ ​ceases​ ​expanding​ ​tar​ ​sands​ ​operations.

Impacts

Social and human rights impacts

Despite being billed as a replacement, the old Line 3 will not be removed when the new Line 3 is put into service. The old pipeline that will be left abandoned crosses 300 miles of northern Minnesota, but the state authorities have no plan to protect landowners from the financial and ecological risks associated with the decomposition of the pipeline.

The new Line 3 will endanger many valuable sources of drinking water since the proposed route will cross areas of high susceptibility for groundwater contamination. Moreover the proposed route crosses the Mississippi River, which provides drinking water to several cities (including Minneapolis and St Paul).

In January of 2019, The Intercept reported that “law enforcement has engaged in a coordinated effort to identify potential anti-pipeline camps and monitor individual protesters, repeatedly turning for guidance to the North Dakota officials responsible for the militarized response at Standing Rock in 2016.”  Resistance to Line 3 construction has been the subject of heavy surveillance by both private security and publicly funded police forces, and collaboration with the actors responsible for the rubber bullets, tear gas, razor wire and water cannons in North Dakota is deeply troubling. The Trump Administration is backing legislation to punish pipeline protestors with up to 20 years in jail.

The old Line 3 – which will be left abandoned - runs through American Indian reservations Leech Lake and Fond du Lac.  Although the proposed new Line 3 will not cross any reservations it will still jeopardize so-called usufructuary or use-rights between Ojibwe bands and the United States government. These use-rights include the rights to hunt, fish, gather medicinal plants, harvest and cultivate wild rice, and preserve sacred or culturally significant sites.

Among the newly proposed route over 180 archaeological sites have been identified, including burial mounds, cemeteries and sacred sites. Lake Minnewawa and Big Sandy Lake which are sacred to the Ojibwe people and used for fishing will be threatened by the new Line 3. Both the construction of and spills from the new Line 3 will threaten traditional foods and medicines, including wild rice which is economically as well as culturally important in Minnesota. Twenty wild rice lakes are within the reach of the oil spills from the new Line 3.

Over 150 First Nations and Tribes across Canada and the U.S. have signed the Treaty Alliance Against Tar Sands Expansion, opposing the use of the signatories’ Indigenous territories and coasts for new or expanded pipeline infrastructure projects that would facilitate the expansion of the tar sands.

 

Environmental and climate impacts

New tar sands projects require new pipelines to be financially viable - the impact of these new pipelines should, therefor, include the expansion of tar sands extraction. Tar sands are 21% more carbon-intensive than, and require three times as much fresh water to extract and refine as, conventional oil. The toxic wastewater is stored in storage ponds or underground wells, risking contaminated groundwater.

The environmental issues associated with Line 3 concern both the new and the old pipeline. Critics of the plan to abandon the old pipeline, including environmentalists, Indigenous groups, and other landholders along the pipeline's route, believe that removing the pipeline would be better than abandoning it. US laws on pipeline abandonment are inadequate to ensure that Enbridge will take proper responsibility for the pipeline once it is decommissioned. Abandoning the pipeline risks contaminating the soil and groundwater with residual oil, lubricants, treatment chemicals, and pipeline coatings as the pipeline corrodes. The pipeline may also become a water conduit, draining and damaging wetlands.

The new Line 3 will cross several important ecosystems including undisturbed forest, important wetlands and some of the most delicate soils, aquifers and pristine lakes in northern Minnesota and the Great Lakes, which are home to one fifth of the world’s fresh water. A July 2017 Greenpeace report noted that oil spilled into bodies of water is difficult to fully clean up, posing serious risks to human health and the environment. Diluted bitumen transported from Canada’s tar sands represents a particulary grave threat to water resources along the routes of proposed pipelines. Leaks might go unnoticed for months since detection systems are only able to detect leaks above 150,000 liters per hour and the preferred route crosses many remote areas.

Enbridge has been responsible for many oil spills in the past, including 20,082 barrels of diluted bitumen into the Kalamazoo River in 2010 - the largest inland oil spill in US history. Expanding the capacity of Line 3 only increases the risk of such disasters in the future.

Governance

Bank policies

The following bank investment policies apply to this project:
Mizuho Financial Group
csr policies
2020-06-01 00:00:00

Environmental and Social Management Policy for Financing and Investment Activity

2020-06-01 00:00:00 | Mizuho
csr policies
2020-06-01 00:00:00

Updated policy - Responsible investment and financing

(document in Japanese)
2020-06-01 00:00:00 | Mizuho Financial Group
csr policies
2020-07-15 00:00:00

Environmental Policy

2020-07-15 00:00:00 | Mizuho Financial Group
Citi
csr policies
2018-11-22 00:00:00

Statement on human rights

2018-11-22 00:00:00 | Citi
csr policies
2020-03-05 00:00:00

Sector Standards

[Date listed represents date as accessed on website]
2020-03-05 00:00:00 | Citi
csr policies
2020-07-31 00:00:00

Environmental and social policy framework

2020-07-31 00:00:00 | Citi
Export Development Canada
csr policies
2019-01-28 00:00:00

Climate change policy

2019-01-28 00:00:00 | Export Development Canada
csr policies
2019-05-01 00:00:00

Human rights policy

2019-05-01 00:00:00 | Export Development Canada
csr policies
2019-05-01 00:00:00

Enviromental and social risk management policy

2019-05-01 00:00:00 | Export Development Canada
csr policies
2019-05-01 00:00:00

Environmental and social review directive

2019-05-01 00:00:00 | Export Development Canada
Credit Suisse
csr policies
2019-02-04 00:00:00

Statement on climate change

2019-02-04 00:00:00 | Credit Suisse
csr policies
2019-03-05 00:00:00

Statement on human rights

2019-03-05 00:00:00 | Credit Suisse
HSBC
csr policies
2017-04-26 00:00:00

Environmental Policy

2017-04-26 00:00:00 | HSBC
csr policies
2020-04-23 00:00:00

Energy policy

2020-04-23 00:00:00 | HSBC
Bank of America
csr policies
2019-04-18 00:00:00

Human Rights Statement

2019-04-18 00:00:00 | Bank of America
Royal Bank of Canada (RBC)
csr policies
2018-01-31 00:00:00

Climate change position & disclosure statement 2017

2018-01-31 00:00:00 | Royal Bank of Canada
csr policies
2019-03-05 00:00:00

Environmental policy

2019-03-05 00:00:00 | Royal Bank of Canada
csr policies
2019-11-25 00:00:00

Climate Blueprint

2019-11-25 00:00:00 | Royal Bank of Canada
csr policies
2020-09-14 00:00:00

Policy guidelines for sensitive sectors and activitities

2020-09-14 00:00:00 | Royal Bank of Canada
Deutsche Bank
csr policies
2016-06-09 00:00:00

Position on Climate change, energy efficiency and the challenges of the energy transition in Germany

2016-06-09 00:00:00 | Deutsche Bank
csr policies
2020-07-27 00:00:00

Environmental and Social Policy Framework July 2020

2020-07-27 00:00:00 | Deutsche Bank
Wells Fargo
csr policies
2020-06-11 00:00:00

Human Rights Statement

2020-06-11 00:00:00 | Wells Fargo
csr policies
2018-06-30 00:00:00

Environmental and Social Risk Management Framework

2018-06-30 00:00:00 | Wells Fargo
csr policies
2020-03-18 00:00:00

Climate Change Statement

2020-03-18 00:00:00 | Wells Fargo
csr policies
2020-07-15 00:00:00

Indigenous Peoples Statement

2020-07-15 00:00:00 | Wells Fargo
Morgan Stanley
csr policies
2018-01-02 00:00:00

Carbon Neutral by 2022

2018-01-02 00:00:00 | Morgan Stanley
csr policies
2019-03-15 00:00:00

Coal and oil & gas policy statements

2019-03-15 00:00:00 | Morgan Stanley
csr policies
2019-08-08 00:00:00

Statement on human rights

2019-08-08 00:00:00 | Morgan Stanley
JPMorgan Chase
csr policies
2020-02-25 00:00:00

Environmental and social policy framework

2020-02-25 00:00:00 | JPMorgan Chase
Crédit Agricole
csr policies
2017-12-07 00:00:00

Policy statement new commitments on climate financing

2017-12-07 00:00:00 | Crédit Agricole
csr policies
2017-12-31 00:00:00

CSR Sector Policy - Oil & Gas

2017-12-31 00:00:00 | Crédit Agricole CIB
csr policies
2019-06-06 00:00:00

Climate strategy

Document in French
2019-06-06 00:00:00 | Crédit Agricole
csr policies
2019-06-06 00:00:00

Climate strategy

Document in English
2019-06-06 00:00:00 | Crédit Agricole
Société Générale
csr policies
2018-05-18 00:00:00

Sector policy oil and gas

2018-05-18 00:00:00 | Société Générale
csr policies
2019-03-31 00:00:00

Human Rights Statement

2019-03-31 00:00:00 | Société Générale
UBS
csr policies
2020-04-21 00:00:00

Climate-related standards in the enery and utilities sectors

Page 56 of the UBS' CSR report 2019
2020-04-21 00:00:00 | UBS
csr policies
2020-03-12 00:00:00

Environmental and social risk policy framework

2020-03-12 00:00:00 | UBS
United Overseas Bank (UOB)
csr policies
2019-12-18 00:00:00

Approach to material ESG factors

Date listed represents date as accessed on website
2019-12-18 00:00:00 | UOB
Desjardins Group
csr policies
2019-02-11 00:00:00

Policy on climate change

Date listed represents date as accessed on website
2019-02-11 00:00:00 | Desjardins Group
DNB
csr policies
2018-11-30 00:00:00

Responsible investment - climate change

2018-11-30 00:00:00 | DNB
csr policies
2019-09-30 00:00:00

Responsible investment - human rights

2019-09-30 00:00:00 | DNB
csr policies
2019-09-30 00:00:00

Responsible investment - serious environmental harm

2019-09-30 00:00:00 | DNB
csr policies
2019-06-13 00:00:00

Group Standard for Corporate Social Responsibility in DNB Group's credit activities

2019-06-13 00:00:00 | DNB
Barclays
csr policies
2016-03-27 00:00:00

Environmental and Social Risk Briefing Oil & Gas

2016-03-27 00:00:00 | Barclays
csr policies
2019-02-28 00:00:00

Environmental risk in lending

2019-02-28 00:00:00 | Barclays
csr policies
2020-04-30 00:00:00

Position on climate change

2020-04-30 00:00:00 | Barclays
Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC)
csr policies
2019-03-05 00:00:00

Statement on human rights

2019-03-05 00:00:00 | Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group
csr policies
2019-03-05 00:00:00

Response to climate change

Date listed represents date as accessed on website
2019-03-05 00:00:00 | Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group
csr policies
2021-01-14 00:00:00

Management of environmental risks

Date listed represents date as accessed on website
2021-01-14 00:00:00 | Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group
csr policies
2020-04-16 00:00:00

Revision of ESG financing policies

2020-04-16 00:00:00 | Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation
Bank of China
csr policies
2018-05-03 00:00:00

Corporate Social Responsibility Policy

2018-05-03 00:00:00 | Bank of China Hong Kong
Bank of Montreal (BMO)
csr policies
2018-12-31 00:00:00

Statement on climate change

2018-12-31 00:00:00 | BMO
Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD Bank)
csr policies
2019-03-04 00:00:00

Environment policy

2019-03-04 00:00:00 | TD Bank
csr policies
2020-11-09 00:00:00

Climate action plan

2020-11-09 00:00:00 | TD Bank
China Construction Bank
csr policies
2018-09-30 00:00:00

Green, Social and Sustainability Bond Framework

2018-09-30 00:00:00 | China Construction Bank

Applicable norms and standards

IFC Performance Standard 5: Land Acquisition and Involuntary Resettlement
IFC Performance Standard 7: Indigenous Peoples

Updates

Construction on Line 3 replacement begins

2020-12-07 00:00:00

After having received a construction stormwater permit from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency on 30 November, the final obstacle following years of legal challenges and environmental reviews, Enbridge said on 7 December that construction on the Line 3 pipeline replacement has started. The Red Lake and White Earth Bands of Chippewa asked the independent Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to stay its earlier approval of the project, citing pending litigation before the Minnesota Court of Appeals, but this was rejected. The replacement segments in Canada, North Dakota and Wisconsin are already operating, leaving only the 542-kilometre stretch in Minnesota. (CBC.org and S&P Global)

Minnesota Pollution Control Agency approves permits for Line 3 tar sands pipeline

2020-11-12 00:00:00

On 12 November, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) and the Department of Natural Resources approved a number of key permits for the Line 3 pipeline, including a water crossing permit, capped air emissions permit and National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System wastewater (NPDES) permit (MPCA). This is expected to trigger the approval of remaining federal permits by the US Army Corps of Engineers. The final remaining construction storm water permit is then expected to be approved by the MPCA within about a month as well. Construction will then likely begin immediately, even though several lawsuits against the pipeline, including one by Minnesota’s own Department of Commerce, are still pending.(mpr.org)

Enbridge completes 12-mile North Dakota stretch of Line 3

2020-11-12 00:00:00

Enbridge Energy officials said Wednesday that they have completed a small section of its Line 3 crude oil pipeline replacement project in North Dakota, leaving only the Minnesota stretch that has been challenged by state officials and others. (Star Tribune)

Minnesota utility regulators give key approvals to Line 3 pipeline project

2020-02-03 00:00:00

The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) voted 3 to 1 on three key approvals for the project: a revised environmental review, a certificate of need and a route permit. The PUC originally voted to approve the controversial oil pipeline project in June 2018. Calgary-based Enbridge Energy is proposing to build the new line, which would replace the current Line 3 crude oil pipeline that stretches across northern Minnesota. The new line would be built along a different route, and would have the capacity to transport about twice as much oil as the current pipeline is allowed to carry (mprnews.org).

Canadian part of Line 3 Pipeline Replacement has been constructed

2019-12-31 00:00:00

In December 2019 Enbridge announced that the construction of the CAD5.3-billion Canadian portion of the Line 3 Replacement Program is complete; the new Line 3 began commercial service in December 2019 (Enbridge press release).

Court rules against Enbridge Line 3

2019-06-03 00:00:00

A Minnesota State Court of Appeals ruled that the environmental assessment of Enbridge's Line 3 pipeline wasn’t good enough. The ruling is a reversal of Minnesota Public Utilities Commission’s decision that approved the environmental impact statement for the pipeline replacement. The appellate court found that the Commission erred when it approved the plan, and found that Enbridge’s environmental impact statement lacked in specificity, specifically where it deals with oil spills in relation to Lake Superior.

Financiers

Enbridge is constructing the Line 3 pipeline using general corporate finance rather than project-specific loans. The financiers listed on this page have provided credit facilities or have underwritten bond issuances for Enbridge and are thereby supporting the Line 3 Replacement Project. As of November 2020, Enbridge has USD 12.87 billion in credit facilities.

In October 2017, Wells Fargo led a syndicate of more than a dozen banks in renewing a credit facility of USD1.48 billion for the company (Banking on Climate Change 2018).

In Enbridge's 2019 annual report it announced that the company "terminated certain Canadian and US credit facilities" and that it in 2019 had entered into:

  • a 3-year credit facility of CAD641 million with a syndicate of Japanese banks;
  • a 5-year credit facility of CAD500 million with an Asian bank.

In November 2019 four banks, Barclays, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank and SMBC were involved in a USD 2 billion total bond issuance for Enbridge. See below for more details.

In February 2020, Mizuho Bank led on a USD 1 billion loan to Enbridge that will mature in February 2022. 

Toronto Dominion Bank is lead agent on a CAD 2,975 million loan to Enbridge which will mature in March 2021.

July 2021 will see a CAD 2,218 million loan to Enbridge Pipelines from 2011 mature.

News

| |
Type:
Year:
blog
external news
our news

Enbridge raises Line 3 replacement cost estimate by $1.1 billion

2021-02-12 | Reuters
blog
external news
our news

Demonstrators protest banks’ funding fossil fuels

2021-01-29 | Radio Canada International
blog
external news
our news

'We Should All Be Water Protectors': Ilhan Omar Visits #StopLine3 Organizers Day After Activists Block Enbridge Worksites

"We owe it to future generations, to the Indigenous communities we've signed treaties with, and to every living being on this planet to stop building fossil fuel infrastructure."
2021-01-28 | Common Dreams
blog
external news
our news

Dear President Biden, An Indigenous Perspective on Your Inauguration

2021-01-20 | Shannon Biggs on Movement Rights
blog
external news
our news

Biden revokes Keystone XL, Indigenous leaders celebrate and push for stronger action

2021-01-20 | Bemidji, United States | Indigenous Environmental Network
blog
external news
our news

Ojibwe bands ask appeals court to stop Enbridge Line 3 construction

The Red Lake and White Earth bands filed suit, the second such filing in a week by pipeline opponents.
2020-12-30 | Star Tribune
blog
external news
our news

Not Just Another Pipeline

The expansion of Enbridge’s Line 3 pipeline is a breathtaking betrayal of Minnesota’s Indigenous communities — and the environment.
2020-12-28 | Louise Erdrich in the New York Times
blog
external news
our news

The battle to stop Line 3 is heating up on the ground and across the US

Activists around the US join national day of action to end financing for tar sands pipelines like Enbridge's Line 3
2020-12-14 | Maaike Beenes – BankTrack
blog
external news
our news

Five years since the Paris Agreement, are banks' 2050 pledges enough to reign in fossil fuel finance?

How the year's 'Paris-alignment' moves stack up against the measures needed to tackle the climate crisis
2020-12-12 | Ernst-Jan Kuiper – BankTrack
blog
external news
our news

Regulators deny First Nations' request to delay Enbridge's Line 3 pipeline replacement in Minnesota

Further delay would have showed 'irreparable harm to these workers,' commissioner says
2020-12-04 | Calgary | CBC
blog
external news
our news

Walz Administration Ignores Line 3 Threat to Clean Water, Climate, and Communities

MPCA approves water crossing permit for the pipeline despite risks to waterways, wetlands, Tribes
2020-11-12 | Gabby Brown, Sierra Club, Sierra Club
blog
external news
our news

State regulators approve Line 3 permits; move pipeline closer to construction

2020-11-12 | MPR News
blog
external news
our news

Barclays, HSBC and Credit Suisse among worst offenders on oil sands finance

ShareAction says Barclays has participated in 11 loan and bond deals to oil sands companies since its net zero announcement in March
2020-10-29 | London | ShareAction
blog
external news
our news

A call to action on the Principles for Responsible Banking: End climate-destructive financing now

2020-10-20 | BankTrack, Rainforest Action Network, and partners
blog
external news
our news

Indigenous Women Leaders warn global financial companies to stop support for tar sands oil

With key financial decision points looming on the Keystone XL, Line 3, and Trans Mountain pipelines, an open letter calls for policies respecting Indigenous rights and ruling out tar sands
2020-10-19 | First Peoples Worldwide, Giniw Collective, Honor the Earth, Indigenous Climate Action, Indigenous Environmental Network, Tiny House Warriors, Unist
blog
external news
our news

Principles for Responsible Banking no obstacle to finance climate destruction

Twenty PRB banks provided over US$1.25 trillion in fossil fuel financing since Paris Agreement
2020-09-22 | Nijmegen | BankTrack, Rainforest Action Network
blog
external news
our news

Line 3 project leaping toward construction

2020-07-25 | Duluth News Tribute
blog
external news
our news

Indigenous Women’s Divestment Delegation pushes Deutsche Bank for fossil fuel divestment amidst pipeline shutdowns, a global pandemic and the climate crisis

2020-07-16 | San Francisco Bay Area | Divest Invest Protect, WECAN
blog
external news
our news

Banking on Climate Change – Fossil Fuel Finance Report Card 2020

New report reveals global banks funneled USD 2.7 trillion into fossil fuels Since Paris Climate Agreement, with financing on the rise each year 
2020-03-18 | Nijmegen | BankTrack, Indigenous Environmental Network, Oil Change International, Rainforest Action Network, Reclaim Finance, Sierra Club
blog
external news
our news

New student group organizes against Line 3 pipeline

2020-02-24 | Minnesota Daily
blog
external news
our news

With New Equator Principles, Banks Fail to Act on Climate or Indigenous Rights

Singapore meeting approves ‘business as usual’ new Equator Principles
2019-11-21 | Nijmegen | BankTrack, Partners
blog
external news
our news

Another Oil Pipeline Blow As Court Rules Against Enbridge Line 3

2019-06-03 | Oilprice.com
blog
external news
our news

Who’s Banking Enbridge?

[updated 18 May 2019]
2019-05-18 | Rainforest Action Network
blog
external news
our news

Big Banks Just Flunked Their Own Test on Climate, Indigenous Rights

2018-11-03 | Truthout.org
blog
external news
our news

Indigenous, environmental and climate justice groups rally outside Equator Principles meeting

Despite global standards, world's biggest banks continue to fund environmentally damaging projects that disregard Indigenous communities’ rights to Free, Prior and Informed Consent
2018-10-17 | Washington, D.C. | BankTrack, Greenpeace USA, Honor the Earth, Market Forces, Rainforest Action Network, Sierra Club, WECAN
blog
external news
our news

JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and Crédit Agricole warned not to finance tar sands pipeline companies

Bank clients Enbridge and TransCanada have failed to secure Free, Prior and Informed Consent of Indigenous communities
2018-10-09 | San Francisco, USA | Rainforest Action Network
blog
external news
our news

How Enbridge’s Bankers Fund a Tar Sands Pipeline

2018-09-18 | Sightline Institute
blog
external news
our news

Bemidji Line 3 pipeline protest indicates renewed opposition after regulatory approval

2018-08-29 | MPR news
blog
external news
our news

Greenpeace block Barclays’ HQ over dirty oil pipeline funding

Greenpeace UK volunteers take over the main entrance to Barclays HQ in London to protest the bank’s refusal to stop funding tar sands pipelines
2018-07-19 | London
blog
external news
our news

AGM briefing: Switzerland's per capita financing of fossil fuels worst in Europe, thanks to Credit Suisse and UBS

2018-04-25 | BankTrack, Greenpeace
blog
external news
our news

Louisiana and Minnesota Introduce Anti-Protest Bills Amid Fights Over Bayou Bridge and Enbridge Pipelines

2018-03-31 | The Intercept
blog
external news
our news

Enbridge's Line 3 expansion is all risk, no reward

2018-03-04 | CBC News
blog
external news
our news

Big banks complicit in massive tar sands destruction and pollution through hundreds of billions in financing

2017-11-02 | Rainforest Action Network
blog
external news
our news

Banks warned of tar sands pipelines investment risks in new report

2017-10-31 | Greenpeace, Oil Change International
blog
external news
our news

PUC: Enbridge must release previously classified data on Line 3 pipeline

2017-10-26 | brainerddispatch.com
blog
external news
our news

Enbridge ordered to publicly disclose the probability of spills along proposed new pipeline

2017-10-26 | startribune.com
blog
external news
our news

PUC: Enbridge must release spill data

2017-10-26 | duluthnewstribune.com
blog
external news
our news

PUC says Enbridge must disclose Line3 oil spill projections

2017-10-26 | apnewsarchive.com
blog
external news
our news

In St. Cloud, Line 3 oil pipeline hearings canceled over safety concerns

2017-10-25 | mprnews.org
blog
external news
our news

Minnesotans deserve an open and transparent process on Line 3

2017-10-25 | advfn.com
blog
external news
our news

Enbridge : Chippewa bands launch own review of Enbridge's proposed Line 3 replacement

2017-10-14 | 4-traders.com
blog
external news
our news

Minnesota tribes to hold their own Line 3 pipeline meetings

2017-10-13 | wctrib.com
blog
external news
our news

Erin Roth: Why we need to replace Enbridge Line 3

2017-10-12 | twincities.com
blog
external news
our news

Enbridge argues Line 3 oil pipeline needed for Minnesota, region

2017-10-11 | mprnews.org
blog
external news
our news

Enbridge Defends Line 3 Pipeline Replacement Plan

2017-10-11 | minnesota.cbslocal.com
blog
external news
our news

Minnesota public hearings begin for Enbridge's $6.5 billion oil pipe expansion

2017-09-26 | Reuters
blog
external news
our news

Greenpeace Investor Briefing: Problematic Pipelines

Investor risk from bank financing of tar sands pipelines
2017-09-20 | Greenpeace
blog
external news
our news

Minnesota Deals New Blow To Enbridge Pipeline Project

2017-09-12 | Oilprice.com
blog
external news
our news

Northern Minnesotans concerned over proposed Line 3 replacement pipeline

2017-06-10 | Herald Review
blog
external news
our news

Business Forum: Unanswered questions abound concerning Enbridge Energy Pipeline 3

2017-06-10 | StarTribune
blog
external news
our news

Oil & Water: Minnesota pipeline proposal could increase oil flows through St. Croix River watershed

2017-06-08 | St. Croix 360
blog
external news
our news

Public comment begins for Enbridge Line 3 replacement

2017-05-15 | Business North
blog
external news
our news

Citizens file to intervene in Enbridge Line 3 case

2017-05-11 | Duluth News Tribune
blog
external news
our news

A look at Enbridge’s Line 3 Replacement project

2017-04-17 | Mesabi Daily News
blog
external news
our news

Saskatchewan oil spill reveals problem with leak-detecting data

2017-01-30 | The Globe and Mail
blog
external news
our news

Minnesota Faces its Own Pipeline Battle: Enbridge Line 3

2017-01-06 | Healing Minnesota Stories
blog
external news
our news

Groups question Enbridge's plans for proposed oil pipeline project

2016-09-26 | Duluth | MPR News

Documents

Type:
Year:
bank documents
2021-02-12 00:00:00

Enbridge Reports Strong 2020 Financial Results

2021-02-12 00:00:00 | Enbridge
ngo documents
2020-12-08 00:00:00

Who's banking Line 3 and Keystone XL

Tar sands pipelines being rammed through in a pandemic
2020-12-08 00:00:00 | Rainforest Action Network
ngo documents
2016-11-01 00:00:00

Enbridge's Line 3

What you need to know
2016-11-01 00:00:00 | Honour the Earth
correspondence
2020-10-19 00:00:00

Letter from Coalition of Indigenous women and organizations to a group of 70 banks on Tar sands financing

2020-10-19 00:00:00 | Coalition of Indigenous women and organizations
other documents
2020-11-12 00:00:00

Enbridge Line 3 Final permits and certification

2020-11-12 00:00:00 | Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
ngo documents
2015-08-07 00:00:00

Treaty Rights and Oil Pipelines

What You Need To Know
2015-08-07 00:00:00 | Honour the Earth
ngo documents
2020-11-03 00:00:00

Memo from the Minnesota Environmental Partnership to Governors Walz, Flanagan and Sutton

2020-11-03 00:00:00 | Minnesota Environmental Partnership
ngo documents
2020-10-31 00:00:00

High Risk, Low Reward

An overview of European banks' position on oil sands
2020-10-31 00:00:00 | ShareAction
our publications
2020-10-20 00:00:00

A Call to Action on the Principles for Responsible Banking: End Climate-Destructive Financing Now

Joint civil society statement
2020-10-20 00:00:00 | BankTrack, Rainforest Action Network, and others
ngo documents
2018-09-09 00:00:00

How Enbridge's bankers fund a tar sands pipeline

2018-09-09 00:00:00 | Sightline Institute
our publications
2018-04-25 00:00:00

Swiss Banks in the End of the Fossil Fuel Age

2018-04-25 00:00:00 | Greenpeace and BankTrack
correspondence
2017-09-25 00:00:00

Letter from Treaty Alliance against Tar Sands Expansion, Rainforest Action Network et al to JPMorgan Chase on Ending finance for tar sands oil

2017-09-25 00:00:00 | Treaty Alliance against Tar Sands Expansion, Rainforest Action Network et al
other documents
2017-09-11 00:00:00

Minnesota Commerce Department expert analysis and recommendation on the certificate of need for the Line 3 pipeline project

2017-09-11 00:00:00 | Minnesota Commerce Department
correspondence
2017-09-21 00:00:00

Letter from Honor the Earth, Rainforest Action Network et al to Wells Fargo et al on Line 3 Pipeline replacement project

2017-09-21 00:00:00 | Honor the Earth, Rainforest Action Network et al
ngo documents
2017-09-20 00:00:00

Problematic pipelines: Investor risk from bank financing of tar sands pipelines

2017-09-20 00:00:00 | Greenpeace

Media

Line 3 route

Line 3 replacement route









Links

Mazaska Talks campaign website

https://mazaskatalks.org/#page

Treaty Alliance Against Tar Sands Expansion campaign website

http://www.treatyalliance.org/

Stop Line 3

https://www.stopline3.org/

Honour the Earth campaign website

http://www.honorearth.org/stop_line_3

Brief history

Enbridge filed the Line 3 Replacement Program (L3RP) regulatory application with the National Energy Board (NEB) on November 6, 2014. On April 25, 2016, the NEB decided that the replacement program was in the Canadian public interest and subsequently recommended approval of the project to the federal Governor in Council.

The Canadian federal government announced its approval of L3RP on November 29, 2016. The construction of the pipeline began in Canada in mid-2017.

Since Enbridge's plans became public, concerns have been raised around both the construction of the new Line 3 and the abandonment of the old Line 3. Environmentalist, Native American groups and other landowners worry about devastating oil spills across important waterways, wetlands and sacred lands. Several groups have formed or took up the issue, including Honor the Earth, MN350.org and Friends of the Headwaters. 

Enbridge fought the environmental review process every step of the way, leading to a courtroom battle that continues to this day.

The project received its certificate of need and route approval from the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission in June 2018. However, the resistance in Minnesota is fierce, resulting in the political players in the administration of Minnesota taking legal action against the state: the state’s Department of Commerce has appealed the decision by the Public Utility Commission to approve Line 3. In other words, the state is suing itself.

Three tribes along the proposed route remain explicitly opposed, as do a myriad of non-profit organizations, youth climate intervenors, landowners, and concerned citizens who are engaged in filing numerous lawsuits on the adequacy of the environmental impact statement, the route selected, and other matters. A detailed timeline can be found here.

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