The Indiana Department of Environmental Management is holding a public hearing Dec. 18 in LaPorte on two applications Enbridge Energy LP has filed as a result of planned water quality impacts for its new Line 6B pipeline project.
The meeting will be held from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the LaPorte County Library, 904 Indiana Ave.
Enbridge's applications seek permission to place fill material into state regulated waters. The purpose of the hearing is to solicit public comment to help IDEM evaluate whether the projects comply with state water pollution control laws and regulations.
Enbridge currently owns and operates Line 6B, a 30-inch diameter crude oil and liquid petroleum pipeline that runs 50 miles through Lake, Porter, LaPorte and St. Joseph counties in Indiana and continues to Sarnia, Ontario.
Enbridge plans to build a new pipeline adjacent to the existing one in segments. The Indiana section of the pipeline would have a diameter of 36 inches. The current pipeline will be deactivated, purged of material, filled with nitrogen and left in place.
The projects will cross 145 wetlands for a total of nearly 23,727 linear feet, which is about 4.5 miles, according to IDEM. Enbridge expects to temporarily impact 76.3 acres of wetlands, which it said will be mitigated by planting and monitoring at impact sites.
To cover the project's permanent wetlands impact, Enbridge will perform compensatory mitigation that includes the restoration of wetlands and grassland to a 70-acre site on Indiana Department of Natural Resources property in Pine Township.
Please Wait…