Minnesota DOH: Nearly 800 workers tested positive for COVID-19 on Enbridge’s Line 3 project

UPDATE: July 8, 2021: This story has been up-to-date to contain Enbridge’s remarks, which were being erroneously remaining out from its first publication, even though an Enbridge spokesperson did respond to Development Dive before deadline.

Enbridge exams workers on the very first and seventh day of employment, then conducts bi-weekly exams immediately after that, and needs wearing masks onsite, social distancing and each day temperature checks, spokesperson Juli Kellner instructed Design Dive. The business stated it is also encouraging workers to get vaccinated.

“We have incentivized immunization and are scheduling to deliver vaccines to the design web-sites as a result of mobile clinics throughout the 5 construction get the job done zones,” Kellner explained. The up to date general rate of optimistic test success throughout summer time development has been considerably less than .6%, she claimed.

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Dive Brief:

As quite a few as 788 employees have examined optimistic for COVID-19 on the $2.9 billion Enbridge Line 3 pipeline challenge in Minnesota due to the fact November, according to the data from the state’s division of wellbeing shared with Building Dive.
The Minnesota Office of Wellbeing carried out an investigation to garner information about an maximize in conditions in Thief River Falls, Minnesota, that began in January. Wellness officers noticed clusters of scenarios in multiple settings and experienced considerations about compliance with basic mitigation suggestions amid community members.
The department attempted to mitigate the distribute by growing tests availability and opening vaccination clinics for the local community. Of the 788 staff on Enbridge 3 who have analyzed beneficial, 3 had been hospitalized and none died.

Dive Perception:

The Line 3 undertaking is changing a 1,097-mile-long crude oil pipeline that runs from Edmonton, Canada, to Remarkable, Wisconsin. Segments of the undertaking in Wisconsin and North Dakota have been completed prior to the 337 miles of do the job that is underway with the Line 3 replacement in Minnesota, which employed about 4,500 men and women for the duration of the wintertime surge in scenarios, according to Al Jazeera.

Calgary, Canada-centered Enbridge commenced challenge perform in northern Minnesota in December of 2020, soon in advance of a winter season surge of COVID-19 cases started in the area. Environmental and community activists raised worries that the venture could heighten coronavirus risks in the communities together the pipeline route.

Despite the pushback, union leaders lauded the news, expressing it would bring countless numbers of substantially-desired work opportunities to the location.

Employers in Minnesota are liable for office speak to tracing simply because they are the most outfitted to discover workplace contacts as a result of schedules, supervisor observations and online video, the MDH statement stated. Even though Enbridge’s safety place of work shared findings from its speak to tracing, the overall health section mentioned it could not pinpoint the resource of most of the bacterial infections.

“With an infectious disorder that spreads through shut speak to, ongoing group unfold, and a big workforce coming and heading that is manufactured up of people from in just Minnesota and from other states, there is no way to tease out the source of most bacterial infections,” the statement reported.

Numerous of the instances ended up from roommates and following-hrs social contacts, the statement stated.

“There are a lot of things at enjoy, together with Line 3 staff, other establishments, industries and occupations, neighborhood unfold, etc.,” it go through.

While Enbridge did not react to Construction Dive’s request for comment, Enbridge Executive Vice President and President of Liquid Pipelines Vern Yu stated in a push statement late very last 12 months that the business would apply a strict COVID-19 management program. During the spike in circumstances, Enbridge elevated surveillance tests of workers from biweekly to weekly, the MDH assertion explained.

On other recent electricity projects, Enbridge has instituted COVID-19 testing and screening protocols for employees, which includes repeated screening and each day well being and temperature screenings, as well as required practices like wearing masks, observing rigid physical distancing and consistently sanitizing perform places.