2nd pipeline under Straits of Mackinac passes pressure test

MACKINAW CITY, Mich. – Enbridge says a second oil pipeline beneath the Straits of Mackinac in northern Michigan has passed a pressure test required in a Justice Department agreement following a 2010 oil spill in southwestern Michigan.

The most recent test was Friday on one pipeline that’s part of Line 5.

The Canadian company pumped the line’s east segment with water and kept pressure higher than usual. Enbridge said in a statement Sunday that it’s “pleased with the validating results of this very significant test.”

The west segment passed a pressure test earlier this month.

The pipelines where Lake Huron and Lake Michigan converge were built in 1953. Line 5 carries about 23 million gallons (19 million imperial gallons) of crude oil and liquid natural gas daily between Superior, Wisconsin, and Sarnia, Ontario.