SAINT PAUL, Minn. – On Monday, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and Minnesota Department of Natural resources announced a settlement with Enbridge for its water quality violations and aquifer breaches. The settlement consists of more than $11 million in payments, environmental projects, and financial assurances from Enbridge. Rep. Rick Hansen (DFL – South St. Paul), chair of the House Environment and Natural Resources Committee, issued the following statement:
“While it is appropriate that Enbridge was held accountable to the highest extent allowed by current statute, that extent is ultimately inadequate.The amount of the settlement is a drop in the bucket for a corporation which had an annual revenue of $41.288 Billion last year. In order to hold these corporations fully accountable it’s critical that we update our environmental regulations to modern standards. The House passed such a law last session, HF 3761, but it failed to make it through the Majority GOP Senate. I will continue to push for this legislation and ask each of my colleagues who value our environment to do the same.”
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