Lake Michigan - is one of America's Great Lakes poised to be the next Gulf of Mexico? Facing a similar environmental disaster following an oil pipeline leak, the rivers leading into Lake Michigan are threatened, and today, the state of Michigan's Governer is incensed by the entire situation.Other Michigan lawmakers expressed outrage over the response to an oil spill that is moving its way toward the waters of Lake Michigan.Canadian pipeline company Enbridge Energy Partners confirmed that a pipeline on its Lakehead system leaked near a pump station in Marshall, Mich. The Lakehead oil pipeline system is one of the longest in the world at 3,100 miles.Enbridge representatives told Michigan officials at their latest news conference that the company was doing everything it could to control the spill that dumped more than 20,000 barrels of oil into the Kalamazoo River."The focus of our work continues to be the containment of the spill," the company said in its latest statement.Michigan lawmakers, however, reacted with outrage over the accident. Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm was quoted in the Detroit Free Press as saying the response from Enbridge and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was "completely inadequate."The plume has reached nearby Morrow Lake, though area officials say it is unlikely the spill would make its way to Lake Michigan before containment efforts start working.County officials in southern Michigan are warning area residents to avoid coming into contact with contaminated water.U.S. Rep. Mark Schauer, D-Mich., who sits on the Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Subcommittee, said public safety was a growing concern."I will not rest until the company takes full responsibility for cleaning up their mess and until federal, state and local agencies do their part to monitor and contain the spill and protect public safety," he said in a statement.Enbridge officials said they deployed 22,000 feet of containment boom to the area and have another 45,000 feet available.The company added that the cause of the spill isn't known.
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