CLARIFICATION: This story has been updated to reflect that HDD fluid is considered a pollutant rather than toxic.

Enbridge's plan to relocate a portion of its Line 5 pipeline in northern Wisconsin could involve a drilling method even the company admits will likely release drilling fluid into surrounding waters.

Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD) is a common method for building pipelines under bodies of water, and it sometimes leads to "frac-outs," or drilling-fluid leaks.

Bobbi Rongstad, who lives in northern Wisconsin, said she has serious concerns about the plans to use HDD on Line 5. For her, the issue literally hits close to home, as the oil pipeline would cross under two streams running through her property.

"I used to work in the utility industry, and it's a great thing for shoving a gas line under a sidewalk, not messing up somebody's front lawn," Rongstad explained. "But when they're doing 30-inch pipe and going 60 feet under the bottom of the river, which is what's proposed, things can go wrong."

In an email to a Minnesota state senator about Enbridge's similar, Line 3 project, the company acknowledged frac-outs are "a generally known and common risk," but argued HDD is still the least environmentally-destructive method for laying new pipeline under bodies of water.

While Rongstad generally agrees, she contended the line should not be placed in the areas around Lake Superior, where any leaks could have far-reaching impacts.

In Minnesota, state officials report more than half of the 21 HDD crossings for Line 3 have been polluted with drilling fluid.

Rongstad said Wisconsin does not have any significant HDD regulations, although the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is accepting comments on its draft technical standards for the process.

"If the DNR were able to put some more regulation on it, I would sure feel better," Rongstad stressed. "But they're not going to be able to do that midstream, you know? The application is in front of them, and they're going to get pressure from Enbridge."

Shannon Holsey, president of the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohican Indians, said in an annual State of the Tribes address last month, Line 5's Draft Environmental Impact Statement fails to take into account numerous potential environmental impacts.

"Safeguarding these tributaries and coastal wetlands is critical to maintaining the deeply rooted connection to the natural world and emotional well-being in our cultural traditions," Holsey asserted.

The rerouting was drafted after the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa sued Enbridge to remove the pipeline from their tribal lands.

While the new 40-mile route falls outside the reservation, tribal advocates stated it will still impact the tribe's watershed area. The DNR is accepting comments on Line 5's Draft Environmental Impact Statement until March 18, and comments on HDD technical standards until March 28.


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A new documentary looked at ways to reduce the human and environmental harms stemming from the mining of "critical minerals."

Without minerals like cobalt, nickel and lithium, there would be no cellphones, electric vehicles, solar panels or long-storage batteries.

Mira Rubio, who directed the documentary for the Trade Justice Education Fund, said people in mining communities often do dangerous work for poverty-level wages.

"In cobalt mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo, people, including children, who are making cents on the dollar, digging minerals that are ending up in $80,000 Teslas or iPhones, they're risking their health and yet they may never have access to clean air or stable electricity," Rubio pointed out.

She noted mining has also led to widespread deforestation and toxic pollution. The film, "CRITICAL MINERALS: Creating a Just & Sustainable Clean Energy Transition," will be screened at the Social and Economic Justice Film Festival in San Francisco next week.

Advocates want the government to use its arguments to negotiate agreements to enforce labor rights and environmental protections. They also support an international standard called free, prior, and informed consent, which would guard against corporate exploitation of indigenous communities.

Rubio explained the nation may already have enough aboveground minerals to meet much of the global demand, if products were designed to be recovered and reused rather than trashed.

"If we can mine less and use the minerals that are already out there by using a circular economic model, that would really help reduce the amount of emissions we're putting out and help make the transition more sustainable," Rubio contended.

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Minnesotans are cooling off after last weekend's extreme heat but communities bearing the brunt of environmental injustice said there will be more climate extremes to contend with, prompting heightened outreach.

Researchers said the harmful impact of climate change is one of the drivers behind Latino populations migrating to the Midwest.

Josefina Gerónimo said destructive wildfires brought her from California to Minnesota. She acknowledged the move does not mean extreme weather events and other environmental harms are gone and noted her family is still prepared in case they are forced to evacuate.

"(We've packed) an extra pair of clothes, water bottles, maps, flashlights; an emergency to-go bag," Gerónimo explained.

It is not just preparations on her mind, since Gerónimo is a leader on the environmental justice committee for Minnesota's Communities Organizing Latino Power and Action. The panel is trying to foster more grassroots conversations about topics such as air pollution disproportionately harming Latino neighborhoods and an equitable transition to clean energy.

Gerónimo pointed out the topics came up in a collaboration with the Metropolitan Council as it develops a regional climate action plan for pursuing local strategies to reduce emissions. She added voices aligned with her group provided their input, and she hopes it will lead to more community engagement.

"A lot of the people that participated, they felt motivated after that collaboration to work on other projects or maybe attend their neighborhood association meetings," Gerónimo observed. "And maybe get more involved beyond the 'Hey, let's clean up for Earth Day!'"

Education is part of this outreach, with occasional periods of smoke from Canadian wildfires and other air quality issues affecting the communities. Committee members can recommend online tools to monitor the threats. Seeing it first hand out West, Gerónimo stressed Latino residents need more guidance on where to go and how not to be exploited during a climate emergency.

"Communities of color may not have as many resources," Gerónimo emphasized. "(They) may be victims to price gouging as they're trying to evacuate, trying to find a hotel or they don't know where evacuation zones are."

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As federal electric vehicle incentives face potential rollbacks, a new study is highlighting the burden of gasoline costs on Black and Latino drivers, and policy interventions which can support equitable EV adoption to help ease the burden.

The Fuel Equity Report shows Blacks and Latinos are "superusers" of gasoline, spending on average 15% of their paycheck to fuel their cars. In Illinois, residents pay the second-highest gas taxes in the nation.

Shelly Francis, confounder and director of the advocacy group EVHybridNoire, said systemic factors like disinvestment in public transportation, economic segregation and long commute times all contribute to the disproportionate effects.

"They're also more likely on average to be driving these older, less fuel efficient cars due to income as well as financing barriers that they may experience," Francis pointed out.

The study says EV adoption could save Blacks and Latinos an average of $4,900 a year on fuel and maintenance but barriers like affordability, charging access and education persist.

The report found the top 10% of Black and Latino gasoline users are generally concentrated in smaller cities and rural areas with Chicago being an outlier hotspot. Francis noted the clusters are also where people are most disproportionately affected by air pollution.

"From a public health standpoint, overexposure is really detrimental to one's health," Francis emphasized. "Increasing your risk for a number of different types of cancer, a lot of respiratory diseases and illnesses. "

The study suggests targeted policies to encourage equitable adoption of EV for Black and Latino communities, including enhancing purchase incentives, expanding financing options, and increasing charging infrastructure in communities where top gasoline users live.

Francis stressed addressing the big misinformation gap about EVs is also crucial.

"Pushing more of those types of stories out there to show like the everyday driver," Francis urged. "It's not some fancy person living out in a castle somewhere, (it's) just regular folks who are trying to work, make ends meet and provide for their families."

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