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Agency readies decision on underwater oil pipeline supports

The company says the pipe's integrity isn't threatened. But it wants to install more than 50 screw anchors for greater stability.
Credit: AP
FILE - This July 19, 2002, file photo, shows the Mackinac Bridge that spans the Straits of Mackinac from Mackinaw City, Mich. Enbridge Inc. says it's setting a firm deadline for completing a proposed oil pipeline tunnel beneath a key Great Lakes channel linking Lake Huron and Lake Michigan. The Canadian company says it has pledged to Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer that the tunnel under the Straits of Mackinac would be in service by early 2024. Enbridge spokesman Michael Barnes said Thursday, May 30, 2019, the company made a firm commitment to it in a recent letter to Whitmer. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says it's preparing to decide whether to let Canadian oil transport company Enbridge install supports for its underwater oil pipeline in Michigan's Straits of Mackinac.

Enbridge disclosed Wednesday that erosion had opened a gap beneath one of two Line 5 pipelines  in the channel linking Lakes Huron and Michigan. The gap is about 6 feet (1.83 meters) wider than allowed under a state easement.

RELATED: Enbridge says gap opens beneath Great Lakes oil pipeline

The company says the pipe's integrity isn't threatened. But it wants to install more than 50 screw anchors for greater stability.

Michigan has granted a permit. Enbridge says it's been waiting 16 months for the Army Corps to do likewise.

Spokeswoman Lynn Rose said Thursday the Corps recently received information it needed from Enbridge to make a decision, which will come soon.

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