Comment in letter Response

Concerns around the • The DNR is managing this drought as prescribed under the
management of Line 3 permits State Drought Management Plan. This ensures restrictions
in the context of severe drought and modifications are applied fairly and consistently across
the state and among permittees, according to Minnesota’s
statutory water use priorities.
• DNR has applied the same water use restrictions on
Enbridge as it has to all other regulated water users in
areas subject to appropriations suspensions due to low-
flow conditions.
• As of August 31, DNR has suspended Enbridge’s surface
water appropriations in 9 watersheds across Minnesota
due to low-flow conditions. This includes appropriations
associated with dust control at 26 locations along the Line
3 route, and with hydrostatic testing and horizontal
directional drilling at 23 locations along the Line 3 route.
• A list of current suspensions of Enbridge surface water
appropriations may be found here. Note that this list will
change as conditions change. 1
“Minnesota Department of • This is false. Neither the original permit for temporary
Natural Resources allowed trench dewatering nor the June 4, 2021 amendment
Enbridge to remove an allows water to be removed from surface water bodies,
additional 4.5 billion gallons of including seasonal wetlands.
water from seasonal • Furthermore, through August 2021, Enbridge has
wetlands...” temporarily appropriated 814.4 million gallons (less than
17% of the company’s permitted limit). The vast majority
of this water has been returned to the water table, with
the estimated evaporative loss totaling between 20 and 41
million gallons.
• It is precisely because of the drought conditions that
Enbridge did not need to dewater as extensively as the
company anticipated needing to do, and as would have
been allowed under the amended permit.
• Dewatering is needed when groundwater seeps into a
construction trench. Because groundwater levels are low,
trenches did not fill in nearly as readily as they might
under more typical conditions.
• As a result, the Line 3 replacement project has led to far
less water appropriation than was authorized in Enbridge’s
permit.
The Minnesota Department of • DNR followed applicable state statute and rule (Minn. Stat
Natural Resources permitted 103G and Minn. R. 6115) in evaluating the company’s
this dewatering “without application for an amendment to the temporary
undergoing additional dewatering permit.
environmental review or

1
https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/line3/index.html
assessments of impacts on • This amendment request did not meet the Minnesota
treaty rights.” Environmental Policy Act’s standards for ordering a
supplemental environmental impact statement; therefore,
one was not ordered.
• Prior to approving the amendment, the DNR carefully
evaluated the requested volume increase and determined
it would not threaten groundwater sustainability or have
other unacceptable natural resource impacts. DNR is
confident that the project, as permitted, meets all
regulatory requirements.
• Some of the factors DNR considered in evaluating the
amendment included:
o The location and nature of the area involved
o The type of appropriation and its impact on the
availability, distribution, and condition of water
and related land resources in the area involved.
o The hydrology and hydraulics of the water
resources involved and the capability of the
resources to sustain the proposed appropriation
o The quantity, quality, and timing of any waters
returned after use and the impact on the receiving
waters involved.
o The efficiency of use and intended application of
water conservation practices.
o The comments received in response to a request
for comments. Comments were solicited from
Minnesota’s 11 tribal nations, the Minnesota
Chippewa Tribe, the 1854 Treaty Authority, four
interested tribal nations beyond Minnesota, 13
soil and water conservation districts; three
watershed districts; 13 counties; State and Federal
agencies including the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers, the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil
Resources, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
and DNR staff; and staff from the Great Lakes
Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission.
o The relationship, consistency, and compliance with
existing federal, state, and local laws, rules, legal
requirements, and water management plans.
o The public health, safety, and welfare served or
impacted by the proposed appropriation.

“Minnesota Department of • Red Lake Nation (RLN) established a camp at the MnDOT
Transportation and Public Safety right of way. This is not a recognized treaty site but is
attempted to “evict” a treaty considered an important religious site due to its location
camp.” near the river. However, through negotiations with
MnDOT and RLN, a verbal agreement was reached which
 allowed a camp to exist at the site for purpose of cultural
practices of religion.
• As Enbridge increased work in the area, the camp
continued to grow which caused a traffic risk to drivers
and individuals on the site. In order to avoid injuries,
MnDOT requested that RLN manage the number of
individuals at the site. RLN responded saying they no
longer had control of the site.
• In response to the lack of control at the site and the
growing site numbers, MnDOT issued a trespass notice,
(not an eviction notice).
• On a separate occasion, State Patrol closed Highway 32 to
traffic for 7 hours to ensure a safe demonstration zone
and work zone, and to reduce the influx of people coming
to the location and exacerbating challenges at the camp.
• Following the road closure, MnDOT and RLN renegotiated
the use of the site to ensure compliance.
• No cultural artifacts were disturbed by non-tribal
members or harmed during the Hwy 32 closure and
trespassing notice.
Use of police dogs as a “show of • State law enforcement have never brought a police dog to
intimidation” any site associated with Line 3 protests.
• On two occasions, once by the Thief River Falls Police
Department and once by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, a
dog was brought to the site. On both occasions, the dog
remained inside the fenced Enbridge area away from
protestors.
• Immediately upon learning the police dog had been
brought on site, state law enforcement asked the local
police department to remove the animal out of respect for
historical trauma around the use of dogs in law
enforcement.
• At no point was any dog involved in the trespass order for
protestors. This first dog incident occurred hours before
the issuance of a trespass order. The second dog incident
occurred during an all-call for police resources.
• State law enforcement has actively discouraged the
presence of police dogs. In one case, State Patrol asked a
third local law enforcement to remove a squad car marked
“K9 Unit” that did not contain a police dog, to avoid
triggering fear among protestors.
Use of funds from Enbridge to • On June 29th, 2021 the Minnesota Legislature passed the
pay for police response public safety omnibus bill allowing public safety costs
associated with Line 3 to be reimbursed from an account
funded by Enbridge, rather than having those expenses
paid by taxpayers.
 • The legislation is explicit that these funds may be used
only for reimbursing state agencies for officers’ salaries
and for personal protective equipment. It may not be used
for equipment such as tear gas, rubber bullets, extrication
equipment, etc.
• As of now, state agencies have received zero dollars from
this account.
• When state agencies do request funds from the account,
they will seek reimbursement only for allowable expenses
(salaries and personal protective equipment)
• This legislation does not in any way incentivize a particular
policing strategy such as increased arrests or patrols. It
simply sets up a funding mechanism for reimbursement.
• The following members of the Minnesota House 2 and
Senate 3 voted in favor of the public safety omnibus bill,
which included the Enbridge reimbursement policy, while
also signing the Line 3 letter to President Biden criticizing
this funding mechanism: Rep. Heather Keeler; Rep. Patty
Acomb; Rep. Esther Agbaje; Rep. Jamie Becker-Finn; Rep.
Kaela Jo Berg; Rep. Liz Boldon; Rep. Jim Davnie; Rep.
Heather Edelson; Rep. Sandra Feist; Rep. Cedrick Fraizer;
Rep. Mike Freiberg; Rep. Rick Hansen; Rep. Jess Hanson;
Rep. Athena Hollins; Rep. Frank Hornstein; Rep. Michael
Howard; Rep. Sydney Jordan; Rep. Fue Lee; Rep. Tina
Liebling; Rep. Leon Lillie; Rep. Todd Lippert; Rep. Jamie
Long; Rep. Sandra Masin; Rep. Carlos Mariani; Rep. Rena
Moran; Rep. Kelly Morrison; Rep. Dave Pinto; Rep. Liz
Reyer; Rep. Mohamud Noor; Rep. Samantha Vang; Rep.
Ami Wazlawik; Rep. Tou Xiong; and Sen. Charles Wiger.
“Staggering levels of violence, • State law enforcement officers have used no less-lethal
tear gas, and rubber bullets” tools in any interactions with Line 3 protestors (whether
along the line, in St. Paul, or at other locations).
• There have been no known injuries associated with any
actions of state law enforcement personnel.
• In one incident, local law enforcement in Pennington
County used less-lethal munitions during a direct action
protest. State law enforcement advised local police
departments, like Pennington County, not to use these
munitions.
“Arrest of Indigenous leaders” • There have been no arrests of official tribal government
leaders at any point. In addition, law enforcement
personnel have worked closely with tribal members
participating in lawful protest activities to protect their
cultural practices and first amendment rights, and

2
https://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/cco/journals/2021-22/J0629015.htm#765
3
https://www.senate.mn/journals/2021-2022/20210629015_ss1.pdf#page=24
 relatively few of the individuals arrested in association
with Line 3 protests have been members of Minnesota
tribal nations. Social media inaccurately continued this
narrative and officers have not targeted Indigenous
leaders.
• To the contrary, indigenous members engaged in
ceremony have been exempted from the arrest process
when state law enforcement has been present.
“Federal surveillance by • The state cannot speak for the federal government, but
Department of Homeland we are not aware of any federal Department of Homeland
Security” Security personnel being assigned to surveillance activities
around Line 3.
• We are aware of one incident on June 7, when a federal
Customs and Border Protection helicopter was flown over
a protest area at low altitude. In response to the
helicopter incident, DPS and DNR issued a letter
denouncing the use of the helicopter.
• The state received assurance that this incident would not
be repeated.
Arrests of Line 3 workers in a • The Walz Flanagan Administration is known for its
human trafficking sting aggressive work against human trafficking. In addition to
establishing the first ever Missing and Murdered
Indigenous Women and Relatives Office, the Governor and
Lt. Governor have prioritized efforts to end sex trafficking
in Minnesota.
• In response to shared concerns about the potential for
human trafficking, the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension
has participated in a focused effort to reduce human
trafficking in the areas around the pipeline.
• This has included numerous proactive operations to
apprehend individuals who purchase women or girls for
sex.
• It has also included a robust statewide anti-trafficking
campaign, “Your Call MN”, which, among other things,
establishes a hotline for reporting suspected sex
trafficking.
• In 2020, the BCA trained more than 450 law enforcement
on identification and investigation of human trafficking.
• BCA also serves as a co-lead for the Human Trafficking
subcommittee in partnership with the Tribes United
Against Sex Trafficking (TRUST) Task Force.
• BCA anti-trafficking staff have also worked with Enbridge
and its subcontractors as well as with Truckers against
Trafficking to ensure that Line 3 workers receive training
that vividly describes the harsh realities associated with
human trafficking, clearly states that it is illegal and taken
seriously in Minnesota, and establishes a clear expectation
 on the part of Enbridge and its contractors that there is
zero tolerance for purchasing sex or discussing this topic at
work.
• Senior leaders from the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension,
the Minnesota State Patrol, and the Minnesota
Department of Transportation met with officers of the Red
Lake Tribal Council on July 22, 2021 to discuss concerns
around sex trafficking and impacts on indigenous women.
Information from this meeting was provided to teams
actively working to combat human trafficking.
“Enbridge did not include key • The cultural resources review was legally contested by
stakeholders in Tribal Cultural several tribes. The case was heard by the Minnesota Court
Resource Management survey of Appeals, which concluded that the cultural resources
team” and tribes “were survey was sufficient.
unsuccessful in having their • The plaintiffs then appealed their case to the Minnesota
claims heard by the Minnesota Supreme Court, which declined to hear the case, allowing
Supreme Court.” the ruling of the Minnesota Court of Appeals to stand.

Violations of tribal rights in • Since 2018, and as recently as this week, DNR leaders and
relation to treaty camps/first managers have repeatedly exercised their authority to
amendment rights make many exceptions to state rules on the management
and use of state parks and state forests in an effort to
accommodate tribal cultural and spiritual activities and
allow for First Amendment activities around Line 3.
• This has included allowing individuals to remain in camp
sites longer than normally allowed; accommodating larger
gatherings than normally allowed; allowing a cultural
structure to remain in place despite a determination by
tribal historical monitors that it did not have significant
historical/cultural value, and other accommodations.
These accommodations have been documented and a list
can be provided upon request.
800 COVID-19 Cases • The 788 COVID-19 cases referenced in the article cited
represent just .1% of the COVID-19 cases confirmed in
Minnesota.
• Enbridge has engaged in a robust bi-weekly testing
program for unvaccinated employees.
• This serial testing program may have resulted in cases
among employees being identified at a higher rate than
the general population.
• The Minnesota Department of Health has provided
technical assistance to Enbridge on their COVID-19
preparedness plans.
• Enbridge provided vaccine opportunities and paid time off
for interested employees to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
Tribal consultations • Tribal consultation has been a high priority for this
administration. As such, all agencies involved in regulatory
processes related to Line 3 have engaged in extensive
formal consultation and nonformal discussion with tribes.
• The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has
engaged and continues to engage in formal tribal
consultation and coordination with tribal nations
throughout the process. The agency offered formal tribal
consultation to all of the state’s 11 tribes prior to making
the original permit decisions. The 7 Ojibwe bands accepted
the offer, and the consultations occurred as follows:
o Bois Forte – January 8, 2020
o Fond du Lac – May 6, 2019
o White Earth – January 14, 2020
o Red Lake – February 7, 2020
o Leech Lake – May 28, 2019
o Grand Portage – June 27, 2019
o Mille Lacs – November 5, 2019
• DNR also participated in several technical coordination
meetings with tribal staff:
o 2019: In-person meeting in Duluth, attended by
Fond du Lac, Lower Sioux, Minnesota Chippewa
Tribe, White Earth, 1854 Treaty Authority
o Meeting with Red Cliff band on December 13,
2019
o 2020: Two technical webinars with tribal staff
o 2020: Numerous individual technical
conversations regarding Tree4Tree, Fond du Lac
peatlands, and with the THPOs regarding cultural
resources
• DNR engaged in additional tribal consultation following
the November 2020 permit decision. Line 3 was a topic of
discussion at the following regularly-scheduled annual
tribal consultations:
o Bois Forte – August 3, 2021
o Fond du Lac – June 4, 2021
o Grand Portage – July 20, 2021
o Mille Lacs, August 5 – 2021
o Red Lake – May 12, 2021
• DNR has also done outreach with tribes at key points, such
as the 2021 permit amendment.
o May 14, 2021: Email to tribal government natural
resource directors and staff about the proposed
amendment
o May 27, 2021: Meeting on the permit amendment
with representatives from Mille Lacs, White Earth,
 and Fond du Lac Bands and environmental staff
representing Minnesota Chippewa Tribe
o June 23, 2021: Letter regarding permit
amendment to White Earth and Minnesota
Chippewa Tribe
o July 20, 2021: Written information provided to
Secretary Sam Strong of Red Lake regarding
drought management
o June 25, 2021: Tribal consultation via Zoom with
White Earth on water appropriation permit
amendment
o July 26, 2021: Tribal consultation via Zoom with
Red Lake Nation on water appropriation permit
amendment
• In addition to the tribal consultations and technical
coordination meetings described above, DNR’s
commissioner, tribal liaison, and other senior leaders have
had numerous conversations with individual tribal leaders
regarding the Line 3 replacement project, including the
dewatering permit amendment.
• Formal Tribal consultations with DPS to discuss Line 3 took
place on the following dates:
o White Earth – November 1, 2019; July 29, 2019;
December 17, 2019; February 5, 2021
o Leech Lake – November 1, 2019; December 16,
2019
o Upper Sioux – November 4, 2019
o Lower Sioux – November 4, 2019; September 30,
2020
o Red Lake – November 12, 2019
o Fond du Lac – November 18, 2019
o Mille Lacs – January 13, 2020
o Prairie Island – January 16, 2020
o Grand Portage – October 5, 2020
o Shakopee – October 12, 2020
• MnDOT Tribal Nation Engagement:
o MnDOT and RLN communicated weekly during
winter ceremonies to ensure elders had proper
cold weather shelter.
o During spring pre-construction, MnDOT and RLN
officials had bi-weekly visits and conversations.
o At the peak of construction, MnDOT was in
continuous contact with RLN. However, as activity
in and around MnDOT sites has decline, our need
for communication about the site has as well but
lines of communication remain open.