In an attempt to meet the demand for natural gas, companies want to lay pipelines across the bottom of Lake Erie and Lake Michigan.
Plans are currently on hold while customers for the natural gas are being found.
The concern that has arisen is that the pipeline will encourage industrial development along the lake shores. Another concern that environmentalists are raising is once installed, the pipelines could be used to transport oil and chemicals through the Great Lakes, which in the event of a spill, could do irreparable damage to the lakes. The growing energy concerns in the United States have led energy suppliers to thrust themselves into finding a solution to the problem. The concern is valid as a report from the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America states that natural gas consumption will increase from the current 22 trillion cubic feet per year to 33 trillion by 2010. However, organizations such as the FERC and the Environmental Protection Agency need to establish standards for the suppliers to follow.