Trial Begins for Environmentalists

Some of the protestors, who disrupted operations at an Enbridge construction project in Ingham County last year, will have their day in court.

4 of the 12 arrested in the incident in Stockbridge, southeast of Lansing, are facing felony charges for resisting arrest after chaining themselves to some equipment being used.  They're also facing misdemeanor tresspassing charges in connection with the July, 2012 incident.  Their trial begins today.

Company officials, who were installing a pipeline, say they lost both time and money and the protestors should be dealt with severely.  Operations were shut down for a half day.

The protestors, though, say they were simply speaking their mind about safety and environmental concerns associated with the project..  The pipeline was similar to the one that generated national headlines when it ruptured in west Michigan dumping hundreds of thousands of gallons of crude oil into the Kalamazoo River.

The demonstrators say that incident is what has generated a breakdown in trust on whether Enbridge is taking enough precautions to prevent another disaster.