No one has publicly blamed environmental activists for what happened this week when an Enbridge company drilling rig and support equipment on a $1 billion project were destroyed by fire in northern Wisconsin.
But the company has been in a years long fight over the rerouting of its Line 5 oil and gas pipeline in the state. This week, Juli Kellner, a spokesperson for Enbridge said the fire was an “act of vandalism,” reported Wisconsin Watch.
The fire destroyed a horizontal directional drilling rig and related equipment and Kellner said graffiti was also discovered at the site.
The fire happened in Ashland County and came after two other fires targeted Enbridge last month. Another drill rig on the Line 4 reroute was also destroyed.
Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline carries up to 23 million gallons of oil and natural gas liquids daily from Superior to Sarnia, Ontario, serving 10 refineries and propane facilities in the Great Lakes region.
“This is the second major vandalism involving construction equipment on the project,” Kellner said. “These incidents put the local community, landowners, first responders and our workers at risk and result in environmental impacts.”
The FBI and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, or ATF, are investigating the cause of the two previous fires that occurred in the town of Gingles and the city of Superior. Representatives of the FBI and ATF did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Kellner said Enbridge supports people’s rights to express their views “legally and peacefully.”
“Acts that damage property and put people or the environment at risk are neither legal nor peaceful,” Kellner said. “We take these incidents very seriously and will cooperate fully with authorities.”
The incident follows two other fires targeting Enbridge that occurred last month, including a blaze in Ashland County that destroyed a drill rig on the Line 5 reroute.
