Last month, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision on the ongoing battle over Line 5 in northern Wisconsin. The Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa has been fighting to get a portion of the crude oil and gas pipeline off tribal land for over a decade.
The court confirmed Line 5 has been trespassing on those lands.
“There's about 12 miles that goes through the reservation, through land that's owned either by the band or band members. And several of those parcels need tribal consent before an easement can be renewed," says Stefanie Tsosie, a senior attorney with EarthJustice who represents the tribe in the case. "But all of those expired in 2013. And since that time, Enbridge has been trespassing. But the Seventh Circuit kind of stopped short of saying when or how or who is going to enforce that remedy,"
She says the case will go back to federal district court in Wisconsin "to fashion some remedies consistent with that decision."
The tribe’s concerns don’t end there.
Line 5 is over 70 years old. It carries crude oil and gas across 645 miles from Superior, Wisconsin to Sarnia, Ontario.
While Enbridge’s reroute would move the pipeline outside tribal land, the Bad River Band and environmental groups argue the pipeline would still fall within the region’s stream- and wetland-rich landscape.
“The reroute is entirely upstream of the band's reservation. And so things that go in the water flow downstream through the band reservation and into Lake Superior, into the Bad River sloughs, which are the heart of the wild rice beds in that region,” Tsosie says. “It's a case of protecting water resources, about protecting Lake Superior for everybody, not just the band, but also everybody who lives in that region.”
Reroute construction of Line 5 began in February 2026.
Part of that work meant getting permission from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to cross four specific waterways.
The Bad River tribe objects to those permits.
“Part of our challenge is that Wisconsin law says that if you're going to do this very specific type of construction, you need to be a riparian owner, which means you need to own the land. And Enbridge doesn't, frankly, own the lands in some of these crossings where it's required,” Tsosie says.
On June 27, a construction accident resulted in 1,900 gallons of drilling fluid being spilled within one of the permitted waterway areas.
The spill triggered a pause in construction through the waterways. Enbridge has requested permission to resume work.
“We asked in state court for the judge to stay construction on those four waterways crossings, because Enbridge doesn't meet the legal requirements,” Tsosie says.
Circuit court judge John P. Anderson will take up the case starting on Aug. 13 at the Bayfield County Courthouse.
“Enbridge makes its case, the band should have an opportunity to make its case, the environmental groups, so everyone should be arguing on that day,” Tsosie says. “The second date, Aug. 20, is an argument on what we call the merits. And so this is about the whole case.”
Enbridge also needed the green light from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to construct the Line 5 reroute.
The Bad River Band is also challenging the Corps’ permit in federal court.
Enbridge says its commitment to safety and community is a top priority: "We are committed to early engagement and meaningful dialogue with Tribes along our pipeline rights-of-way, based on mutual respect and trust."
Editor's note: Enbridge Energy Partners is a financial supporter of WUWM.
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