The state Department of Natural Resources is permitting the Enbridge oil pipeline company to replace a 14-mile segment of pipe that crosses wetlands and waterways in Douglas County, but it isn't acting now on a new and less certain line, the agency announced Tuesday.
Approval of Line 3 allows Enbridge to replace a 34-inch pipe with a 36-inch line that can carry 760,000 barrels daily from Alberta, Canada, to its terminal in Superior.
Enbridge has also proposed a new 30-inch crude oil line, but the so-called "Sandpiper" line may not be built if Minnesota doesn't give approval for its section. Enbridge recently said it hopes to invest in a different route. The DNR completed an environmental impact statement on both proposals.
