Business leaders in Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin urge court to keep Line 5 operating

Business leaders in Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin have joined forces with their Canadian counterparts in the legal fight over the Line 5 pipeline.

The U.S. and Canadian chambers of commerce are also included in a new legal brief filed with the U.S. District Court in Michigan.

The filing comes after a similar brief was submitted yesterday by the federal Liberal government urging the court to keep the cross-border pipeline operating.

The chambers spell out in detail a cascade of likely "severe, nationwide and international" consequences if the line running through Michigan is shut down.

They argue that Line 5, which is owned and operated by Calgary-based Enbridge Inc., is a vital source of economic growth and energy throughout the U.S. Midwest.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer gave Enbridge until today to shut down the pipeline, fearing an environmental catastrophe in the Straits of Mackinac, where Line 5 crosses the Great Lakes.