Rupture in Pipelines in the Straits of Mackinac

A University of Michigan researcher says a rupture of the aging underwater oil pipelines through the Straits of Mackinac would be the “worst possible place” for an oil spill on the Great Lakes, as the results would be catastrophic. David Schwab is a research scientist at the U of M Water Center who has studied water flows for more than 30 years. His study is in collaboration with the National Wildlife Federation, and it looks at various possible effects of oil spills in the Straits of Mackinac. All of the scenarios would be very bad, according to Schwab, who says an oil spill would affect a wide area in a short span of time. The 61 year old pipelines transport 23 million gallons of oil and other petroleum related products each day.