Calgary-based Enbridge, Inc. is seeking permits from the DNR that would allow the company to reroute its pipeline across 186 northern Wisconsin waterways and 612 acres of wetlands.
Today the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled 6-1 that a statute allowing the legislative Joint Committee on Finance (JCF) to block Knowles-Nelson Stewardship projects violates the Wisconsin constitution.
“Piece by piece, the U.S. Supreme Court is dismantling environmental regulation, taking apart the foundation of what has allowed us to clean up the air and water since the 1970s.
“This standard limits the amount of mercury, heavy metals, hydrochloric acid and other toxic pollutants that power plants are allowed to release into our environment, and there is no question we need those limits to be as strong as possible.
“Holding the public hearing now, before the Army Corps has all the information it needs to fully assess the risks to our wetlands and waterways, is premature and unfairly deprives the public of a meaningful opportunity to participate in the process,” said Brett Korte, staff attorney with Clean Wisconsin.
“This bill puts the burden of PFAS cleanup on Wisconsin taxpayers instead of polluters. It isn’t fair, and it doesn’t reflect the values of our state,” says Clean Wisconsin Water and Agriculture Program Director Sara Walling.