The chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board told a congressional field hearing Monday the aging line that ruptured and exploded in Sissonville in December wasn’t the only antiquated piece of the gas transmission system.
Deborah Hersman told U.S. Senators Jay Rockefeller and Joe Manchin, and those gathered at the federal courthouse in Charleston, the entire gas transmission system is running on 50-year-old technology.
“These systems that have been set up to operate these pipelines are really operational systems, they are not leak-detection systems,” Hersman testified. “These systems are not sophisticated. These are older systems based on operations.”
Hersman cited three incidents in which the NTSB noticed a critical lack of timely information reaching pipeline operators: A gas leak and explosion at San Bruno, Calif., which resulted in one death, a pipeline rupture in Inbridge, Mich., which caused a catastrophic petroleum leak, and the Sissonville incident.
“What we see is a lack of recognition the pipeline leaked,” Hersman said. “In two of these events it’s been outside sources calling in and saying, ‘You have a rupture. You have a leak.’”
Hersman says the Sissonville explosion had the potential to be incredibly tragic and could have gone on for hours if it hadn’t happened at a time when four field technicians from Columbia Gas were on site at the Lanham pump station to shut off the valves to the line. She said because of the aging technology it was impossible for operators at the Columbia control room to know which of the three lines in the Sissonville area was ruptured and forced the shutdown of all three.
A subsequent NTSB investigation revealed the pipeline which ruptured and exploded was installed in the 1960s and the walls of the pipe had deteriorated to a dangerously thin level. She says in addition to improved leak detection, the system needs automatic shutoff valves which can be operated remotely or automatically in the event of a pressure drop.
“The future is really to improve the technology and to understand what is going on — whether it’s the controllers getting better information or having these automatic valves,” ” Hersman said. “We know people have trouble shutting these valves down.”
Controllers needed 90-minutes to close off the ruptured line in California which resulted in a loss of life. Gas company workers were stuck in traffic trying to get to the valve location. The Michigan petroleum leak went on for 17 hours with crude oil spilling onto the ground and three shifts of controllers came and went before detection was made.
“In an area like West Virginia, this situation could have been very different if it had been in the middle of the night, during rush hour, or if there were people on I-77,” Hersman testified. “You happened to have four people in the compressor station at Lanham. They actually could shut the valves down. It took them an hour to do it, but they could actually shut the valves down, they didn’t have to come from somewhere else to do it.”
NiSource Executive Vice President Jimmy Staton told the panel the improvement process is underway.
“It is our plan as we learn more and finalize our analysis of bringing the line SM80 back in service, we will consider putting automatic and remote control valves in place,” he said.
Staton also testified NiSource is presently involved in a $5 billion system-wide upgrade of its transmission system. The plan also includes system wide installation of modern control valves.
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Comments
Uncle Fester
This is not good news, especially with more and more gas being transported because of the Marcellus Shale. Obama will give the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt $4 billion for 20 F-16 fighter jets and 200 M1-A1 Abrams tanks, but we can't get a few million for gas pipeline safety in the US??
January 28, 2013 at 4:21 pm | Report comment
Sherry Smith
This is a multi-million corporation making hefty profits with the resources & hopefully the knowledge to upgrade these lines to meet both federal standards & industry best practices. Do not compare this company to a third world country. This is an example of free enterprise which you conservatives say can regulate themselves without government assistance &/or interference. Think they are doing a good job blowing up the interstate?
January 28, 2013 at 4:33 pm | Report comment
WV Patriot
I have hunted all over this great state. I don't know a thing about gas lines. But I have walked and rode a 4-wheeler over many small lines in the forest and always wonder how this could be safe. But at the confidence from the of wisdom and those who lived or owned the land I continued to ride and walk. Have the gas companies stretched this age old investment to the point of critical mass?
January 28, 2013 at 7:13 pm | Report comment
Dave Jackson
Careful--we just might have to stop making our new "Friends of The Gas Company" plates for our cars and trucks.
January 29, 2013 at 7:49 am | Report comment
Joel Geary
This is not at all surprising to me. I have property in rural Kanawha County with a low pressure line running through it that has leaks in it all the time. If it were High pressure I'd be scared to death. We hunt on the property and at times the smell is overpowering. I've called. My neighbors have called. They'll come out and fix one leak and 2 more will pop up.
January 29, 2013 at 9:05 am | Report comment
Shadow
Over the past 60 years, our Government has been Santa to the rest of the World and a detriment to our infrastructure by overtaxing and overspending. Now, we are behind in everything as no money was left for maintenance and upgrade.
January 29, 2013 at 9:32 am | Report comment
Sherry Smith
Our government does own this line. A big, wealthy corporation does. They need to fix it!
January 30, 2013 at 11:29 pm | Report comment
Sherry Smith
I meant - out government does NOT own.....
January 30, 2013 at 11:30 pm | Report comment
John Wilshere
While the immediate concern is the older lines that are in existence, where is the content about current lines that are being built? Are the safety standards of the current lines substantially addressing the older hazards? Without that content, someone might assume that no advancements have been made? Sometimes we have a tendency to point out the worst case only, lump all practices together and not communicate where the technology and safety standards are for current lines that are being installed. This leads to throwing out the baby with the bath water and would have you believe that all pipelines are the same. They are not. Now we will hear from those who don't want the natural gas industry to flourish at all. When I was in school this was called causation/correlation theory and it's the oldest trick in the book to advance a negative agenda.
January 29, 2013 at 9:33 am | Report comment
polarbear
Shadow is correct its hard to fix our infrastructure when we have to fix all the damage we do when bombing other countries
January 29, 2013 at 12:10 pm | Report comment
WV Patriot
Shadow is right on target. Our state has never reaped the bounties bestowed upon other states. We simply make do as West Virginians have for a long time. Time for Washington, DC to pay their due to us. Not a hand out. Just what every other politically rich state has taken for decades.
January 29, 2013 at 3:44 pm | Report comment