Overview:
Former Tribal Chair Aaron Payment argues that Enbridge Line 5 poses an unacceptable threat to the Great Lakes, Tribal treaty rights and the region’s economy. Drawing on his experience with the 2010 Kalamazoo River oil spill, he challenges the proposed tunnel, questions who will bear its costs and calls for the shutdown of Line 5.
Guest Opinion
On Saturday, August 29, my tribe’s chairman, Austin Lowes, and I spoke at the Paddle for Our Future protest in St. Ignace, Michigan. Chairman Lowes did an excellent job framing this issue and the threat Enbridge Line 5 represents.
Days earlier, he and his administration did a great job during a consultation session with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, one of the last steps in permitting the tunnel project. But, as expected, it fell on deaf ears with the Trump administration.
In July, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources approved the tunnel permit despite Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s assurances to Bay Mills President Whitney Gravelle that this would not happen. Fortunately, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled that the permit was issued without regard to environmental considerations.
Shortly after the governor let us down, I reached out to Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist to urge a reconsideration. Just recently, we saw a retreat, with the governor now asserting opposition to building a tunnel.
For whatever reason the governor of Michigan allowed the permit issued in July 2026 to move forward, she has since retreated. I realize the false lure of jobs that a tunnel represents to union workers is enticing, but it cannot outweigh our interests as a Tribe or our responsibility to uphold our treaty rights.
As the son of a tribal commercial fisherman, this issue is especially important to me. When I served as tribal chair, I was extremely active on the issue and spoke at more than 20 rallies with Oil & Water Don’t Mix, For the Love of Water and other environmental groups.
My relevant experience living through the oil spill on the Kalamazoo River in 2010, while serving as an executive for the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi close to there, gave me keen insight into what an oil spill can mean for our communities and environment.
When the 2010 spill happened, the Battle Creek Enquirer described the emergency response as being like the “Keystone Cops.” More than a million gallons of oil were allowed to leach into the river, causing a toxic area that was large enough to force an evacuation. The estimated time to return the environment to its pre-spill ecology is more than 100 years.
PUMP & PRAY
Congressional hearings in 2010 exposed Enbridge’s spills across the country involving more than 1 million gallons of oil. “Pump and pray” seems to be Enbridge’s operating philosophy.
When the Line 5 easement was permitted more than 73 years ago by the State of Michigan—23 years beyond its expected lifespan—it was an era when only a few Michigan Tribes were recognized. No consultation occurred to gauge the potential impact on our treaty rights.
Since that time, the U.S. Supreme Court case United States v. Michigan established that we have a pre-eminent treaty right to natural resources in the exercise of our treaty rights.
This is not welfare. We exchanged nearly 14 million acres of land in the 1836 Treaty of Washington, also known as the Treaty of Washington with the Chippewa, Ottawa and Potawatomi.
During all consent decree negotiations for which I have been a party, I asserted a place-marker for our bottomland rights as well as our riparian rights.
U OF M SPILL SIMULATION
According to scientists at the University of Michigan, when modeling all the available data points—including water currents, temperature and topography—a spill would quickly engulf Mackinac Island, requiring an evacuation.
Given that the fresh water on the island comes from the surrounding Great Lakes, bottled water could become a way of life for the foreseeable future.
Rivers and tributaries along up to 150 miles of shoreline would be choked off.
Atik Ameg (Whitefish) would be eradicated, decimating a centuries-old Indigenous way of life.
In other treaty-rights cases, such as the Culvert Case flowing from the Boldt decision in Washington state, the State of Michigan would likely face a level of liability for turning a blind eye to the threats posed by Line 5.
ASSIGN THE COSTS
In 2017, my tribe contracted for an economic impact study of a spill at the Straits of Mackinac. The impact would be devastating.
A spill would likely take at least one or two seasons of tourism offline. Business loans and mortgages would come due. Projected unemployment would rise to pandemic levels, potentially causing Michigan’s unemployment insurance system to run out of funds, leaving taxpayers to cover the burden.
Our way of life centered on fishing would be eliminated in the region for the foreseeable future.
Another telltale sign of what is to come was the previous effort by former Gov. Rick Snyder to have a Tunnel Authority placed under the Mackinac Bridge Authority. Taxpayers came out in droves to object, and the proposal was abandoned, only to be followed by suggestions for the creation of a separate Tunnel Authority.
Enbridge appears to have no plans to cover the fixed or operational costs of such an authority. Michigan taxpayers will be on the hook to cover those costs.
Over the years, I have testified that as a private company, Enbridge should be required to carry liability insurance sufficient to cover the potential exposure when a spill happens.
Big oil companies see this as “business as usual,” which means that while they know the risks, they litigate to wear down their opponents. This creates an unfair advantage as they rely on corporate welfare subsidies, with the benefits flowing to private shareholders rather than taxpayers.
Most of the oil that courses through Line 5 does not benefit Michigan taxpayers.
Finally, it is a false narrative to push the argument that oil would have to be trucked across the Mackinac Bridge. Given that most of the oil in Line 5 does…
Dr. Aaron Payment currently serves on his tribal council. He previously served 22 years in office including four terms as tribal chairperson. He also served for nearly a decade on the National Congress of American Indians Executive Committee including at 1 st vice president twice. A high school dropout, Dr. Payment earned five college degrees including doctorate in Education (EdD). He served as a university faculty teaching Native Studies/Political Science; as School Board President of a Tribal Grant and State Charter School; and as a Tribal College Board Regent Vice-President. Dr. Payment can be reached at AAPayment@saulttribe.net.
