The Alaska pipeline was built across permafrost. The oil needs to be kept above 140° Fahrenheit to move through the pipe and this heat can cause the permafrost to melt and the pipe to break. This can cause lasting problems to the surrounding environment. The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) regulate the pipelines in America and the Minerals Management Service (MMS) regulate offshore pipelines. After the huge leak of oil after the explosion on the Horizon drilling rig in the Gulf I’m sure we all hope that our government is looking closer at those who regulate the pipelines and drilling to prevent anything like that from happening again.
2 comments:
I didn’t know that the pipelines in Alaska are above ground because they could burst if they were put under. That’s interesting. I always thought it was silly having the pipes above ground because anybody could just walk up to it, put a bomb on it, and blast open the pipeline. I guess that doesn’t really happen. They must patrol it a lot. I agree, they need to keep an eye on what is going on with drilling and transporting of oil. It is critical that we don’t let mistakes like the Horizon rig to destroy our environment. Of course, it would just make more sense to go into cleaner energies like geothermal, but big companies won’t allow it because they are greedy, and the commerce is what controls our world.
What an interesting article. I love the picture- it sort of resembles a tube slide ride.
B.P. needs to take responsibility for the oil clean up instead of trying to weasel out of it. The damage is far from recovered and more problems are still being recognized, almost a year later.
From Fox News online, two weeks ago:
Nearly one year after the BP oil rig explosion that caused 4.9 million barrels of oil to pollute the Gulf of Mexico, a pilot flying over the area reported a sheen of about a half-mile long and a half-mile wide, according to Barnard. Another caller reported a much larger sheen – about 100 miles long.
A press release sent Saturday night said the Coast Guard was investigating reports of an oil sheen in the Gulf. The Coast Guard says there is a substance in the water, though officials have yet to determine what it is.
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