To the editor:

Once again some of the politicians in the U.P. are eager to claim the sky will fall if Line 5 is shut down.  The latest version is that electrical rates in the U.P. will increase if Enbridge ceases to run Line 5.

We heard a similar claim earlier regarding propane and refuted it by showing that alternatives exist.  Like propane, alternatives for electricity exist.  Alternatives that will actually reduce the cost of U.P. electricity.

It is true that U.P. power costs are among the highest in the nation.  But keeping Line 5 operating merely maintains the status quo.   It does not reduce the rates.

Renewable energy – solar and wind – have arrived. 

Considering the geographical proximity to the winds of Lake Superior and Lake Michigan, the U.P. would be an ideal fit for wind turbines.  And considering the population of the U.P., wind energy, along with solar energy, could supply a large portion of its electrical needs.

Why then aren’t the politicians advocating for a real solution to the price of electricity in the U.P., rather than using the residents of the U.P. as pawns to keep Line 5 running?