On August 12, nearly 200 people crowded into the conference room at Northwood Technical College as the contested case hearing over Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline reroute began.

     The opening day featured hours of legal arguments and public testimony, setting the tone for a high-stakes battle over Wisconsin’s wetlands, waterways, and tribal sovereignty.

     The Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, joined by Clean Wisconsin and several environmental organizations, is challenging permits issued by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

     They argue the DNR’s approvals for the 41-mile reroute fail to comply with state law and ignore the environmental and cultural risks tied to the project.

     Earthjustice Senior Attorney Stefanie Tsosie, representing the Band, told the court that the pipeline threatens not just water resources, but the very homeland of the Anishinaabe people.

     “The Bad River Band has been a steward of this land, the surrounding waters, wetlands, and rivers, including Mashkiiziibi herself, and Anishinaabeg-Gichigami for hundreds of years. In English, those would be the Bad River and Lake Superior,” she said.

     She explained that the Band would show how the project lacked adequate baseline data and that construction methods such as trenching, blasting, and horizontal drilling would cause lasting damage.

     “If something happens to this region, the Band has nowhere else to go, it’s the Band’s homeland,” she added.

     Clean Wisconsin attorney Evan Feinauer placed the dispute in a broader context, pointing out that Wisconsin has already paid the price for wetland loss through flooding, habitat destruction, and degraded water quality.

     “Our past failures create an obligation to preserve what we can for future generations,” Feinauer said.

     Feinauer stressed that although the state has groundwater and wetlands standards in place, they mean little if not enforced consistently.

     “An oil spill of any meaningful size could be catastrophic. Such a spill is far from outlandish given the proposed route’s geology, steep slopes, erodible soils, and numerous other risks,” Feinauer said.

     The DNR defended its process, saying it had conducted one of the most comprehensive environmental reviews in its history and imposed more than 200 conditions on Enbridge.

     Supporters of the reroute, including labor unions and local business groups, highlighted the 700 construction jobs and $135 million in economic activity the project could bring. They also warned that shutting down Line 5 could disrupt energy supplies and raise heating costs for Wisconsin residents.

     Still, much of the public testimony was opposed. Forty-six people spoke during the opening day, many warning that the risks to water and tribal sovereignty outweigh any short-term economic benefit.

     “No oil will replace the human right that is clean water,” said Bad River member Gracie Waukechon. Others pointed to Enbridge’s history of spills and its failure to provide detailed site-specific data about the land the pipeline would cross.

     The courtroom fight is only the latest chapter in a long-running dispute between Enbridge and the Bad River Band. Built in 1953, Line 5 is a 645-mile pipeline that transports crude oil and natural gas liquids from Superior, Wisconsin, through northern Michigan, to refineries in Sarnia, Ontario.

     For decades, the pipeline crossed through the Bad River Reservation under easements that eventually expired. In 2019, the Band sued Enbridge in federal court, demanding the company shut down and remove the pipeline from its lands.

     A federal judge later ruled that Enbridge had been trespassing on the reservation and ordered the company to shut down the line by June 2026. The court also ordered Enbridge to pay the Band more than $5 million in profits it made while operating unlawfully.

     Both Enbridge and the Band have appealed parts of that decision, leaving the case tied up in the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals.

     Enbridge’s proposed reroute is meant to keep the pipeline operational by skirting the reservation. The company insists the project is safe and necessary for energy reliability in the Midwest.

     Tribal leaders and environmental advocates counter that it simply shifts the risk onto other fragile ecosystems and communities.

     The contested case hearing in Ashland is expected to stretch over several weeks, with additional public testimony scheduled for early September in Madison and presentations from environmental advocates, the Bad River Band, Enbridge, and the DNR continuing through the end of the month.

     For the Band, the fight remains about survival and sovereignty. As Tsosie told the court, “These project impacts are not unavoidable. And they aren’t acceptable under the state’s wetlands and water laws.”