OAKLAND, Wis. — Approximately 70,000 gallons (264,978 liters) of oil leaked from a pipeline in Wisconsin, according to local authorities.

The incident was identified on November 11 in Jefferson County, which is situated about 60 miles (96.5 kilometers) west of Milwaukee. The leak was discovered by a technician from Enbridge Energy, as reported in an official federal accident assessment.

The oil spill occurred on Enbridge’s Line 6 due to a malfunctioning connection in the pump transfer pipe at the Enbridge Cambridge Station. The leak has been estimated to involve around 1,650 barrels, which translates to roughly 70,000 gallons.

Juli Kellner, a representative for Enbridge, stated on Saturday that the cleanup and investigation efforts were initiated immediately after the leak was detected, and those efforts are still ongoing. She added that approximately 60% of the spilled oil has been removed through excavation of the contaminated soil.

Kellner indicated that the incident was promptly reported to the regulatory authorities, although a report from a federal pipeline safety agency suggested that the pipeline may have been leaking for a significant period prior to its discovery.

“Our team is collaborating with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources throughout the cleanup and restoration process,” Kellner explained.

Line 6 is a 465-mile (748.3-kilometer) pipeline that transports crude oil from Superior, Wisconsin, to a terminal located near Griffith, Indiana, as per Enbridge’s mapping.

Critics of the situation highlighted that the spill was uncovered in the same week that Wisconsin regulators granted the first permits for Enbridge’s initiative to reroute the aging Line 5 pipeline around the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa reservation. Detractors argue that this rerouting still poses a risk to the local watershed and continues to encourage reliance on fossil fuels.