Exxon pipeline leaks thousands of barrels of Canadian oil in Arkansas

Originally posted by rickymouse
Tragic accident. I wonder how much oil can leak out of the pipe after they shut it off. .

depends on the valve and how new or old it is and where they have a shutoff valve positioned on it.

reply to post by sean


It hasn't been approved yet, and these spills aren't terribly uncommon.

Think pipelines over land are a better option than a super-tanker accident in the ocean.

reply to post by sean


I do believe it is sabotage to drive the price of oil up in Canada, the only way I'll be able to know is to monitor the price of oil in canada. I've been reading speculation that this shale oil hey day is supposed to end for Canada but I don't see a natural reason why. Nevermind I found a reason why.


www.cnbc.com...

s08.static-shell.com...
s04.static-shell.com...

reply to post by goou111


Observing this is there an intelligent scientific explanation as to what caused the pipe separations or leak?

reply to post by jimmyx
I deal with minor crude spills on a daily basis, as long as the spill is not continuously reinforced, the damage will go away within a few months. A crude oil spill is not the end of the world as it is made out to be by reactionaries.

There are many small microscopic critters that love to munch on crude and they clean it up pronto. This was demonstrated in the recent spill in the Gulf of Mexico, This spill was played as then end of the world as we know it, It was a lot of crude oil, within six months it was gone. Consumed by the critters.

If crude is so bad, there wouldn't be a blade of grass growing in parts of the country that experienced the results of the early days of the oil boom in the last century.

We as a country need crude oil, it is an integral part of our existence until something better comes along. Right now there is nothing viable on the horizon. Some people view oil companies with contempt, worse than anything on the planet. If this is your view, stop using the product.

Quit being a hypocrite, Don't buy gasoline one minute and curse it the next... get yourself a couple of horses and a buggy. Doesn't fit your lifestyle? Then change it and quit bitching and whining.

A saltwater spill on the other hand is devastating to the environment, nothing will ever grow for many, many years on land that suffers a saltwater spill. Saltwater on land is far more damaging than a crude oil spill.

It was 12,000 barrels....not 84,000 (which someone else claimed)....that spilled in Arkansas.

Pipe had a 2-3 inch gash. Cause still unknown and under investigation.

Stinks to high heaven though....even though EPA has cleared air quality tests. Glad I can't smell it from my house.

Considering the gash (which I have not yet seen personally), my guess is that someone hit the pipe and doesn't want to confess to it. So far, investigators have not stated the how the pipe was compromised....

Logically, either someone hit it or it corroded. Given the currently known PUBLIC facts, it could be either.

UPDATE 2-Arkansas opening probe into Exxon pipeline spill

www.reuters.com...

Arkansas on Tuesday launched an investigation into Exxon Mobil Corp's ruptured crude pipeline that released thousands of barrels of oil into a housing development last week, just as forecast rain was expected to complicate clean up efforts.

Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel asked Exxon to preserve all documents and information related to Friday's spill and ongoing recovery at the site in Mayflower, Arkansas, about 20 miles northeast of Little Rock.

"This incident has damaged private property and Arkansas's natural resources. Homeowners have been forced from their homes," McDaniel said in a statement.

Requesting that Exxon secure the documents is the "first step in determining what happened and preserving evidence for any future litigation," he said.

Originally posted by CIAGypsy
It was 12,000 barrels....not 84,000 (which someone else claimed)....that spilled in Arkansas.

Pipe had a 2-3 inch gash. Cause still unknown and under investigation.

Stinks to high heaven though....even though EPA has cleared air quality tests. Glad I can't smell it from my house.

Considering the gash (which I have not yet seen personally), my guess is that someone hit the pipe and doesn't want to confess to it. So far, investigators have not stated the how the pipe was compromised....

Logically, either someone hit it or it corroded. Given the currently known PUBLIC facts, it could be either.

edit on 2-4-2013 by CIAGypsy because: (no reason given)

I highly doubt it was from corrosion the pipes are galvanized and besides that on the inside oil protects metal as it seeps into the pores of the metal.

reply to post by CIAGypsy


I believe this was buried pipeline, considering a lot of residents didn't even know it was there.
I read that the site of the spill had to be excavated.

reply to post by elfrog


Yeah...
I guess that's why there is still oil in the gulf.

Originally posted by sean

I highly doubt it was from corrosion the pipes are galvanized and besides that on the inside oil protects metal as it seeps into the pores of the metal.

Hate to tell you this, mate....but corrosion on the pipeline is actually very common. I worked the Enbridge oil spill in Marshall, Michigan in August 2010 from a clean-up, environmental impact assessment. That pipe broke due to corrosion. A few weeks later, Enbridge had ANOTHER pipe break....this one outside of Chicago. Cause - corrosion. A few weeks after THAT, Enbridge had a THIRD pipe break....this one outside New York city. Cause - corrosion. Right after that, there was a huge gas pipe explosion in California. Cause - corrosion. This is all searchable via Google. It can and does happen....frequently.

The National Transportation Safety Board has investigated 20 pipeline accidents since 2000. Debbie Hersman, who heads the agency, says by and large the system is safe.

"But that still doesn't mean that we should accept these accidents when they occur," she says. "Particularly if you can demonstrate that they are preventable. And I will tell you, 100 percent of the accidents that we've investigated were completely preventable."

Hersman says her investigators repeatedly find the same problems — for example, cracks and corrosion that were discovered by inspections but never fixed.

Arkansas Oil spill sheds light on aging pipelines

Originally posted by Kali74
reply to post by CIAGypsy

 

I believe this was buried pipeline, considering a lot of residents didn't even know it was there.
I read that the site of the spill had to be excavated.

I happen to live very, very close to this area. I also work intimately with the Arkansas Dept of Emergency Management, the local office of Emergency Management in Faulkner county, and the sheriff's dept. At this point, I have not been on-scene as I have had other priorities that haven't given me time to get out there. Currently, the cause is still unknown. Had the local OEM (Office of Emergency Management) not acted so quickly, the oil would have spilled into Lake Conway and cost Exxon MILLIONS. The EXCEPTIONAL local emergency response is what has limited the damage in this case. The new assessment has indicated a loss of 5600 barrels of oil....down from 12,000.

The cause is still under investigation and NO INFORMATION jor details are being released on any potential cause so far. As for excavation, they have to excavate out the contaminated soil. I have not heard anyone say the pipe had to be excavated for the spill to be capped. Not arguing that this is true or untrue....just saying that no one at the local OEM, ADEM, Incident Command, or law enforcement has mentioned that to me specifically.

ETA - the pipe was buried in the ground....but that doesn't mean someone didn't inadvertently hit it while digging. There's actually quite a bit of construction going on in the area. Again, we are still waiting on the investigation to be completed before releasing details on what happened.

Originally posted by sean
reply to post by baddmove

 

Looks like you got nice claim lawsuit there. Accident waiting to happen if that caught fire and it looks like you're on natural gas too. You might want to get out of there while you still can.

edit on 1-4-2013 by sean because: (no reason given)

Wasn't my backyard..

I was just sharing a pic I found..

But Thanks for caring...

reply to post by elfrog

A crude oil spill is not the end of the world as it is made out to be by reactionaries.

The world, not even California, ended with the Lakeview Gusher. Not saying I'd want either of them in my back yard, but elfrog is correct IMO, not a big deal, and there will be some very happy oil loving microbial colonies gathering for the feast. One mans poison as they say.

en.wikipedia.org...

It's not the end of the world?...Except maybe to the people it happens too. Once you smell benzene and other oil products, the body is already exposed to toxicity. Right now in New Orleans, local news mentions that NOLA residents were awakened by intense smell and burning eyes, sore throats, nausea and more, relevant to oil odor? Now, today, it has been reported that homes in the Bayou Corne area are having methane coming up underneath homes. Last report i heard was that the Arkansas spill was listed as a no fly zone now. Awful lot goin on relevant to it all. Some stuff may be bs but given the GOM fiasco, I wouldn't be surprised things are worse than some folks would like us to believe. The Bayou Corne people are having a terrible time of it...getting money help, having to leave their homes...Some Arkansas folks may have the same. Sure, we use oil...everyone does. What choice anymore. Things have gone too far. That's still no excuse for these companies to operate free and clear when folks have lives/property ruined and have no help or recourse.

reply to post by shrevegal


Problem with Nuke plant in Arkansas and just in, news relevant to an explosion at another power plant in Georgia at enenews.com Yep,, sure enuf "stuff" goin on....oil company wise and nuke power plant wise...sure gives one that warm, fuzzy feeling. May not be end of the world stuff but somehow me thinks, it all adds up over time. None of it for the good of things. Rumormillnews has some info relevant to the Arkansas spill as well as earthboppin.net and other sites as well. Missouri had another shaker as well as Oklahoma. Arkansas had shaker last week also, I think. Things in and around the New Madrid just do not look too swift.

Any big explosion around those areas for any reason can't be good where things already seem unstable and having troubles...one thing after the other. May not be world ending yet but who knows....what's next. Then again, rose colored glasses are cheap and may help. Maybe nothing is or will happen.

reply to post by shrevegal


You are correct....the smell is AWFUL. There is one homeowner in that subdivision who just closed on the sale of their house in that neighborhood THAT DAY the spill happened. Now their buyer is trying to back out of the deal. They don't want the house anymore because of the spill. Look that guy in the face and tell him it doesn't affect him. May not be the "end of the world" and I'm sure he will receive compensation from exxon but that takes time and doesn't solve their immediate problems.


There is a no-fly zone around the area....that fact is true. However, there was NOT a nuke disaster in Arkanasas. They had a non-radiation related accident at the Russellville plant that caused one person to die and two others injured. But it wasn't due to radiation and didn't compromise their infrastructure.

I work daily with disaster management and response. To say that a crude oil spill is no big deal could only come from someone who really has no clue what they are talking about....

Originally posted by sean

Hate to tell you this, mate....but corrosion on the pipeline is actually very common. I worked the Enbridge oil spill in Marshall, Michigan in August 2010 from a clean-up, environmental impact assessment. That pipe broke due to corrosion. A few weeks later, Enbridge had ANOTHER pipe break....this one outside of Chicago. Cause - corrosion. A few weeks after THAT, Enbridge had a THIRD pipe break....this one outside New York city. Cause - corrosion. Right after that, there was a huge gas pipe explosion in California. Cause - corrosion. This is all searchable via Google. It can and does happen....frequently.

yeah I can confirm this too, they are supposed to check the corrosion (not sure on the time table but it would probably depend on the oil). Corrosion isn't supposed to get bad enough to let leaks through but sometimes it happens.