"Emails show Enbridge private security keeping tabs on activists in the Straits of Mackinac," 13 Dec 2019

Interlochen Public Radio has obtained emails between a private security contractor working for Enbridge Energy and several law enforcement agencies near the Straits of Mackinac. The emails show the contractor kept tabs on anti-Line 5 activists... Many of his emails detail what the water protectors were doing or publicly posting on social media... Nathan Wright is a citizen of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians and one of the leaders of the water protector group, which is known as MackinawOde (Heart of the Turtle). Wright says their group is entirely peaceful. He and others had assumed Enbridge security was watching them, but he called the contents of the e-mails “creepy.”

... Kyle Whyte... a professor at Michigan State University and a citizen of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation... says there’s a trend of companies trying to control public advocacy behind the scenes. “Instead of companies proposing risky projects being subject to oversight, it’s citizens concerned about preventing risks who are subject to oversight from those seeking to impose the risks... There is a problem of mutual accountability here.”

... Enbridge spokesperson Ryan Duffy said in an email statement that Enbridge welcomes discussion on their projects and respects the right to peaceful protests. “The safety of our employees, the public and the environment is our top priority at Enbridge, and therefore we take appropriate action to ensure the security of all of our facilities,” said Duffy. “We will refrain from discussing our security measures publicly as doing so may compromise the safety and security of our facilities and our people.”