Eco-Sabotage and Activism Escalate Over Enbridge Line 5 Re-Route in Northern Wisconsin
Executive Summary
Militant environmental activists have claimed responsibility for sabotaging trees along Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline re-route corridor in northern Wisconsin, marking a new phase of direct action coinciding with early construction and logging activities near the Bad River Reservation. The tree-spiking incident and accompanying anonymous communiqués, published by Unsalted Counter Info, follow a “call to action” urging resistance to the pipeline and highlighting the presence of worker housing and logging preparations. These actions indicate an escalation in eco-defense activity in response to Enbridge’s recent federal permit approval, with environmental and Indigenous advocates continuing to challenge the project through both legal and extra-legal means.
Analysis
Recent developments around Enbridge’s Line 5 re-route demonstrate an overlap between lawful environmental opposition and underground eco-sabotage, with the latter explicitly adopting the rhetoric and tactics of past Earth Liberation Front and anti-pipeline movements.
On November 7, activists using the pseudonym “Unsalted” published two communiqués: one titled A Call to Action: Line 5 Re-Route Construction Begins and another claiming responsibility for spiking dozens of trees along the proposed pipeline easement near the Bad River Reservation.
The group described inserting steel, aluminum, and ceramic spikes into trees along the corridor, stating the goal was to damage machinery and delay Enbridge’s work without injuring workers, echoing 1980s Earth First! sabotage methods.
The posts urged others to join “defenders of the earth” at the site, criticized “man camps” for temporary workers in Ashland and Marengo, and tied the re-route to broader Land Back and Indigenous sovereignty movements.
Enbridge confirmed preparatory activity including logging, storage, and worker housing near the project area but remains restricted from full construction pending the outcome of a Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources hearing expected in December.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued a federal permit earlier this month, sparking renewed protests from the Bad River Band, Midwest Environmental Advocates, and allied groups who claim the reroute threatens wetlands and treaty rights.
The spiking incident, if verified, marks the first confirmed case of eco-sabotage targeting Line 5’s reroute and reflects a return to militant environmental tactics that have been largely dormant in the Upper Midwest since the early 2000s. Such tactics are designed to impose financial and logistical costs rather than cause injury, though they significantly raise safety risks for loggers and mill workers. The use of pseudonymous “communiqués” on anarchist media mirrors communication styles used by far-left and eco-anarchist groups elsewhere, suggesting ideological alignment with anti-industrial and anti-colonial narratives rather than formal organizational coordination.
Authorities in Wisconsin and federal agencies monitoring pipeline infrastructure are likely to increase surveillance of the construction corridor, particularly around Ashland and Iron Counties. Future incidents may include sabotage of vehicles, logging equipment, or supply chains associated with the project. Local law enforcement coordination with federal partners, including the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and FBI environmental crime units, is probable as the investigation develops.
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