deemed significant (USDOT), that is, either there
is a fatality or injury requiring in-patient hospitalization, it causes $50,000 or more in total costs
(measured in 1984 dollars), there are highly volatile
liquid releases of more than 5 barrels or other
liquid releases of more than 50 barrels, or there are
liquid releases that result in an unintentional fire or
explosion.
oil out of line: pipeline leaks mar
peru’s industry image
This is not hearsay, or alternative media conjecture.
This is a commonly accepted fact by the same corporate media which has avoided discussing such hazards
in the small number of reports they have bothered to
release on the Dakota Pipeline issue. In light of this, it
becomes important for us to inform ourselves on the
matter. For the details on the subject of petroleum and
transportation, here is Forbes.com:
Crude is a nasty material, very destructive when it
spills into the environment, and very toxic when
it contacts humans or animals. It’s not even useful
for energy, or anything else, until it’s chemically
processed, or refined, into suitable products like
naphtha, gasoline, heating oil, kerosene, asphaltics,
mineral spirits, natural gas liquids, and a host of
others.
The most controversial transport mode today is
pipeline, mainly because of the Keystone XL debate
and the recent Pegasus and Enbridge pipeline
ruptures. The industry points to the generally good
safety record in terms of percentages. Among oil
pipeline workers, the rate hospitalization was 30
times lower compared to rail workers involved in
transporting oil, and 37 times lower than for road
transport, between 2005 and 2009, the latest period
for which complete data exists (Intermodal Safety
in the Transport of Oil).
But pipeline spills are inevitable. About 280 pipeline spills occur each year in the U.S. that are
Again, you’ll notice that these measures are in
human health and property damage, not environmental effects. Environmental impacts are very
difficult to estimate and, in almost all cases, are not
even attempted.
In the end, all of these transportation modes can
be made safer if stricter regulatory controls and
modern technologies are emplaced, but the questions remain – can we make the industry comply
and which ones do we want to invest in?
Finally, what brave reader wants to calculate the
value of an acre of land destroyed by an oil spill?
The EU recently allotted $100 per acre for removing pristine land for energy use, but this seems way
too low. My muse suggests you start with Sierra
Club, NRDC and EDF.
source
So we can see that with the pipeline-method of shipping crude oil, spills are inevitable. These lines are
extremely difficult to maintain without some form of
spillage. To add, the above article only refers to aboveground piping. When we add in the factor of water
and marine habitats to the equation, the risk and
assurance of spillage takes on a whole new dynamic
entirely. Let's also consider the fact that spills are
inevitable while piping oil, and that the Standing
Rock Sioux Tribe depends upon the Missouri River
for their food and water supply. What would happen
if we were to