LANSING – Enbridge Energy Partners
LP will sponsor Michigan Technological University’s Great Lakes Research Center
to provide real-time environmental monitoring of the water conditions in the
Straits of Mackinac, the company announced Wednesday, as well as the Center’s
efforts to integrate another monitoring buoy in the Upper Great lakes Observing
System.
The new buoy will be equipped with
technology measuring the flow of the water beneath by “looking
downward” using sound waves while and Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler
measures the magnitude and direction of currents at one-meter intervals from
near the surface to the bottom.
“Employing the expertise of the
GLRC will provide important information to keep the Straits safe for everyone
who uses the waterway,” said Dave Hoffman, senior manager of research,
development and innovation for Enbridge Pipelines, in a statement.
“Enbridge Partners’ Line 5, which crosses under the Straits, is diligently
monitored 24/7. The dual pipelines are operated and inspected using
state-of-the-art tools and technologies. This buoy … will give us additional
data to enhance our legacy of safe operations that dates back for more than 60
years.”
The company notes that commercial
shipping, the U.S. Coast Guard, fishing, ferries and tourism all depend on the
Straits, where Lake Michigan and Lake Huron meet.
“The Straits of Mackinac are probably
the most heavily traveled portion of all the Great Lakes,” said Guy
Meadows, GLRC director and leader of the Enbridge Partners-sponsored project.
Until this project, Enbridge said,
there have been limited real-time measurements in this section of the Great
Lakes.
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