Jordan Beck | Daily Press State Reps. Beau LaFave, left, and Sara Cambensy look at a programmable logic controller in the electric switchgear building at the Enbridge Rapid River Pump Station Tuesday.

RAPID RIVER — State and local legislators, among other people, toured the Enbridge Rapid River Pump Station Tuesday afternoon.

Northern Michigan Area Manager for Enbridge Inc. Bob Lehto said the tour was meant to increase public understanding of Enbridge’s Rapid River station and its Line 5 oil and gas pipeline, which is directly connected to the station.

“I think that the more we talk about what we do — the more informed people are about what our operation is — I find that we’re able to have much more healthy dialogue beyond the politics,” he said.

The tour was also intended to thank county commissioners in the area. According to Enbridge, 14 counties — including most counties in the Upper Peninsula — have passed resolutions in support of its efforts to build a tunnel for Line 5 under the Straits of Mackinac.

The Rapid River station helps pump oil and natural gas liquids through Line 5; additionally, some natural gas liquids are taken from Line 5 at the station and processed into propane at nearby Plains facilities. This propane is then sent throughout the U.P.

During the tour, attendees visited the station’s electric switchgear building, which Lehto described as the “hub” of the facility. In addition, they saw where Line 5 connects to the station and the facility’s pump building. (Though tour participants did not enter the pump building due to noise, they were able to see inside thanks to a mesh screen on one side of the building.

Enbridge representatives spoke about safety measures during the tour, as well.

“Safety is baked into everything that we do,” Lehto said.

Lehto said devices called “smart pigs” are run through the pipeline. These measure things such as erosion, ovality, cracks and deformation.

Additionally, Enbridge keeps a close eye on the pipeline’s operating pressure.

“Those pressures are monitored 24/7,” Lehto said.

After the tour, State Rep. Beau LaFave said he had previously toured the Rapid River station in 2018.

“(It’s) really nice to be back here at the facility,” he said.

LaFave also spoke about the role Line 5 plays in the U.P.’s economy.

“If the line were shut down tomorrow, electricity prices go up by 15 percent or more and propane prices will be $6 a gallon,” he said.

LaFave was not the only state legislator present for the tour.

“Having driven by the facility several times a year, it’s nice to finally see what goes on here and how important this facility is to the U.P.,” State Rep. Sara Cambensy said.

Cambensy expressed her support of Enbridge’s tunnel project Tuesday. She said that, in addition to housing the pipeline, the tunnel could function as a “utility corridor” for broadband and transmission lines.

“This could give the eastern U.P. (a) tremendous … economic advantage,” she said.

Dickinson County Commissioner Barbara Kramer thought the tour was “fantastic.” She said she planned to hold a public forum focusing on what she learned during the event in early 2020.

“There’s so much information that we need to share with our constituents,” she said.

Don Steckman, general manager for propane supplier Ferrellgas, said he was glad to have a chance to tour the Rapid River station.

“Ferrellgas has been buying gas through Rapid River since it opened, and it’s the first time I’ve had a chance to come over here,” he said.

The Rapid River station supplies about 30 million gallons of propane to propane companies in the U.P., Steckman said.

“‘Critical’ is the best word I can use to describe it,” he said.

Topics related to energy will continue to be discussed in the area with today’s meeting of the U.P. Energy Task Force in Escanaba. The meeting is scheduled to take place from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the 952 Conference Room of the Joseph Heirman University Center at Bay College.