LANSING, Mich. — State officials announced last week they have reached a $75 million settlement with Enbridge Energy over a 2010 oil spill.

Enbridge Energy, Limited Partnership and other Enbridge affiliates spilled more than 800,000 gallons of oil into Talmadge Creek and the Kalamazoo River in July 2010 from a pipeline Enbridge owns, Line 6B. The statement says the settlement finalizes cleanup and restoration requirements for areas affected by the spill.

“This is a huge win for Michigan’s environment,” said Michigan Department of Environmental Quality Director Dan Wyant. “We are pleased to announce this settlement, because the key provisions are projects to improve and restore the river corridor.

“This settlement will mean improved water quality, improved fish and wildlife habitat and an improved experience for river users in the years to come.”

According to the statement, the Enbridge spill impacted more than 38 miles of river and 4,435 acres of adjacent shoreline habitat. Marshall Township Clerk Cynthia Sink said in her opinion the river itself has been restored to an even better state than it had been in before the spill.

In addition to the restoration work Enbridge has completed up to now, the EPA made Enbridge clean up invasive plant species that had been on the shoreline for many years, she said. But, she added, the spill has caused neighbors a lot of inconvenience.

“I think we got the worst of the spill, along with Emmett Township,” Sink stated. “The spill started on the other side of Marshall Township and went through all of Marshall Township. They were able to stop a lot of it before it got to Battle Creek.”

According to information provided by the township, 40 percent, or 9,000 acres of land in Marshall Township, is agricultural. About 10 percent is under irrigation. The primary crops grown there are corn, soybeans and wheat. There is one dairy operation and two operations that feed cattle.

About 425 acres are enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) in Marshall Township. CRP removes cropland from production and protects topsoil from erosion and provides additional wildlife habitat. CRP is designed to reduce water runoff and sedimentation and help protect groundwater as well as surface water.

Under the settlement, Enbridge will pay $30 million as estimated costs for the company to restore or construct acres of wetlands in the watershed for permanent protection.

It will also pay $18 million to remove Ceresco Dam in Ceresco and construct other improvements to the river in the previously impounded area. These changes are supposed to help restore the run of the river closer to its natural, historical condition.

It will also spend $10 million to construct and improve recreational and boating access sites for the public at five locations and provide an endowment for perpetual maintenance of the recreational and access sites. These include Saylor’s Landing and Ceresco Green in Marshall Township, as well as Angler’s Bend, Paddler’s Grove and Historic Bridge Park in Emmett Township.

The company will pay $5 million to the state for additional enhancements and restoration of the Kalamazoo River, to be paid within 30 days of the entry of the agreement. It will pay an additional $12 million to the state to reimburse Michigan for its costs in conducting and overseeing cleanup work, restoration and mitigation, as well as attorneys’ costs.

The restoration projects are in addition to completion of the cleanup work. The company is required to continue to monitor and collect any sheen and submerged oil from the spill in the Kalamazoo River, and to continue to monitor the situation at Talmadge Creek.

“We made a promise to the people of Michigan to restore the area, including the Kalamazoo River and Talmadge Creek, as close as possible to its preexisting condition and work with those directly affected,” Enbridge said in a blog post reacting to the settlement. “Enbridge has been a good neighbor in Michigan for more than 60 years and we continue taking steps to continue that legacy in the Great Lakes State.”

The company also posted a video on its website about its restoration efforts. The complete statement from the company as well as the video are linked to at www.enbridge.com