A local Member of Parliament has called on the federal government to protect consumers in the face of a possible pipeline shutdown.
With a disruption in petroleum supply likely should the Line 5 pipeline be shut down Windsor West MP Brian Masse has introduced motions in the House of Commons designed to limit the impact of any gasoline shortage.
The Line 5 pipeline is Enbridge's twin set of lines buried below the Straits of Mackinac in northern Michigan. According to the Detroit Free Press, Wednesday was the deadline set by Governor Gretchen Whitmer for Enbridge to stop using the pipeline or face a forced shutdown. As of Wednesday evening, Enbridge was still pushing 23-million gallons of crude oil and natural gas liquid a day through the pipeline.
Masse said in a video, shown below, that one of the motions he had tabled was the creation of an oil-and-gas ombudsman's office.
"This would allow the public to file complaints and information to be investigated for any potential price gouging, speculation, or even collusion of competition that you might see in the marketplace," said Masse.
The MP has also called for the creation of a monitoring agency for the petroleum industry, which he said goes back to a similar measure discussed in 2003 by a House of Commons committee.
The motions come as gas prices in the Windsor-Essex area are rising due to an issue with the Colonial Pipeline in the eastern United States. CBS News reports that a major ransomware attack forced a partial shutdown of the line, leading to the possibility of gasoline shortages and panic buying at the pumps. The Colonial Pipeline was pushed back into service Wednesday evening and is expected to be fully online by the weekend.
It was not immediately clear how a shutdown of the Line 5 pipeline in Michigan may affect gasoline supply in Ontario.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tw90IL2e98