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Judge extends temporary restraining order, allows western leg of Line 5 to resume for testing

LANSING, MI (MPRN)--   A Michigan judge ruled Wednesday to keep a temporary restraining order against Enbridge in place while allowing the company to resume operations through the western leg of the Line 5 pipeline.

The order stops short of granting Attorney General Dana Nessel’s request for an injunction against the company, instead extending and modifying the existing restraining order.

Enbridge will be allowed to restart the western leg of Line 5 in order to conduct safety testing. The eastern portion will remain shut down.

David Holtz is with the environmental group Oil and Water Don’t Mix, which advocates for a shutdown of the pipeline.

“I think the Attorney General got what she needed which is a delay in keeping those pipelines shut down so they don’t pose a threat to the Great Lakes. That’s her primary concern,” he said.

But Holtz says the order dodges one of the broader questions around the case—whether the state has a right to regulate the pipeline at all.  That determination may come when the judge issues his final ruling in the case.

In a written statement a spokesperson for Enbridge said the company remains willing to work with the state to address concerns about the safety of Line 5 “and its ultimate replacement with The Great Lakes Tunnel.”