Groups Deliver Thousands of Minnesotan Petition Signatures Against Enbridge Line 3 to Minnesota State Capitol

St. Paul, Minn -- Today, Minnesotans and allied organizations with over 17,000 petition signatures from over 460 towns, cities, and municipalities across Minnesota gathered at Governor Tim Walz’s office in the State Capitol to urge his administration to stop the Enbridge Line 3 tar sands pipeline.

Minnesotans from Greenpeace, MN350, Sierra Club North Star Chapter, Honor the Earth, Environment Minnesota, Daily Kos, CREDO Action, Oil Change International, and Food & Water Watch presented signatures from Minnesotans urging Governor Walz and his administration to respect Indigenous treaty rights and protect the land, water, wild rice, and climate from the threats posed by Enbridge’s Line 3 pipeline project.

Greenpeace Climate Campaigner Rachel Rye Butler said:

“Governor Walz and Lt. Governor Flanagan made the right move earlier this year in continuing the Minnesota Department of Commerce’s appeal of the Line 3 pipeline permits. Today thousands of Minnesotans are calling on the Walz Administration to stand strong and do everything in their power to make sure that the dangerous Line 3 pipeline is never built. Enbridge has been trying to bamboozle decision-makers and everyday Minnesotans into supporting Line 3 despite its clear risks to the land, water, and climate. Enbridge may have the ignominious distinction of being the biggest lobbying spender in the state, but the strong and growing opposition to Line 3 shows that Minnesotans aren’t buying it.”     

Sierra Club North Star Chapter Director Margaret Levin said:

“Line 3 would threaten our clean water, communities, and climate, all for the sake of more oil our state does not need. Governor Walz and Lt. Governor Flanagan have made it clear that they understand these risks, and now we urge them to continue doing everything in their power to stop this dirty tar sands pipeline and realize a truly clean, just energy future for all Minnesotans."

Environment Minnesota State Director, Tim Schaefer said:

"Enbridge's proposed Line 3 expansion is a clear threat to Minnesota's Indigenous people, its water, and to the future of our state. Climate change is real and there is no longer any excuse to expand our fossil fuel infrastructure. If they consider themselves climate champions and upholders of treaty rights, Governor Walz and Lieutenant Governor Flanagan must do everything in their power to stop Line 3."

Oil Change International Senior Campaigner Collin Rees said:

“Line 3 is a key test for Governor Walz and his administration to prove he’s willing to be a climate leader and stand up for Indigenous rights. The science is crystal clear: There’s zero room for new fossil fuel infrastructure if we’re to avoid the worst impacts of the climate crisis. And the politics on climate are simple – it’s not enough to support renewable energy goals if you’re not actively planning for a careful phase-out of the fossil fuel industry as well. Governor Walz must stand strong with Indigenous communities and tens of thousands of others across Minnesota, and do everything he can to ensure Line 3 is never built.”

Andrea Chu, Regional Organizer with Food & Water Watch, said:

“We cannot afford to lock-in our use of fossil fuels with Line 3 because we have very little time to hold off the worst of the climate crisis. Line 3 would be such a huge step backward for Minnesota, when we need to create good green jobs and build renewable energy to have any chance at a livable climate for the future.”

Irna Landrum, Campaign Director at Daily Kos, said:

"We cannot ignore how, in addition to these oil pipeline projects needlessly endangering our water and health for profit, Line 3 and others like it violate the land treaty rights of tribal nations. Stopping Line 3 is a matter of environmental and climate justice, but it is also crucial to preserving Indigenous lands and sovereignty."

Dr. Laalitha Surapaneni, M.D., assistant professor and practicing physician in general internal medicine and member of Health Professionals for a Healthy Climate, said:

"We saw a preview of the health impacts of Line 3 this past week. Wildfire smoke from Alberta, Canada, coupled with hot weather in Minneapolis caused poor air quality. Vulnerable Minnesotans like children with asthma are hurt the most by poor air quality. Our current climate crisis will worsen if we continue to burn tar sands oil. Climate change is a public health emergency. The prescription is to quit fossil fuels and move to clean energy and electric transportation. As a health professional, I say no to Line 3."

Mary Breen, MN350 Volunteer, said:

“Enbridge is spending millions of dollars to try to convince us that the Line 3 pipeline is right for Minnesota. In reality, Minnesotans across the state agree that Line 3 must not be built -- the risks to climate, water, and Ojibwe treaty rights are too great. At such a divided time in our country, the movement to stop Line 3 and move away from tar sands oil is something that tens of thousands of us have found unity and community around.”

Nicolette Slagle of Honor the Earth said:

"For Indigenous peoples who have cared for and lived on these lands since time immemorial, Line 3 is more than just a dangerous oil pipeline -- it's an existential threat and an affront to tribal sovereignty and the treaty-affirmed rights to hunt, fish, and harvest wild rice. Enbridge's record of oil spills speaks for itself-- no pipeline should be allowed to threaten the water, land, and wild rice. Today, seventeen thousand Minnesotans are calling on Governor Walz and Lt. Governor Flanagan to uphold these treaty rights and in doing so to protect the land and water for all."

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Photos will be available 3 hours after the event in high-resolution here and low-resolution here.