Line 3 Protests Kept Clearwater County Sheriff’s Office Busy During 2021

By Laura Hamilton laurahamilton@rjbroadcasting.com

Looking back at this past year, Line 3 protests consumed a lot of their time and kept the Clearwater County Sheriff’s Office busy during the summer months. During a Year in Review interview. Sheriff Darin Halverson stated he was proud of his staff. They avoided any major conflicts and didn’t have any flashpoints that would of brought more people to the county whether it be line 3 protestors or anti-law enforcement people. He feels this is due in part to establishing a good line of communication and repertoire with the organizers of the demonstrators a few years prior to Line 3 coming in.

Sheriff Halverson said they had to close roads in some situations which was a law enforcement decision made for public safety reasons and not because of the protestors.

Sheriff Halverson says he feels they were able to protect peoples rights to protest while enforcing the law and mitigating any problems that arose.

The Line 3 Replacement Project was substantially complete on September 29,2021 and went on line October 1st. Line 3 starts in Alberta, Canada, and clips a corner of North Dakota before crossing Minnesota en route to Enbridge’s terminal in Superior, Wisconsin.