Major Oil Pipeline Leaks in Ohio Nature Preserve

TOXIC POLLUTION
CRIMES AGAINST NATURE
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Ohio’s Oak Glen Nature Preserve smothered in crude oil after leak in Sunoco pipeline

Up to 40,000 liters of crude oil leaked into the Oak Glen Nature Preserve about 400 meters from the Great Miami River, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency estimates.

Stream of crude oil leaked from Sunoco pipeline runs across Oak Glen Nature Preserve in Ohio. Source: EPA.

“The leak, which occurred on a line operated by Mid-Valley Pipeline Co, a division of Sunoco, was discovered at 8:20 p.m. EDT on Monday (0020 GMT Tuesday). The company shut the line, which helped reduce the pressure of the leaking oil, an EPA spokeswoman said, but it was unclear if oil was still spewing from the pipe.” Reuters reported.

“The extent of impact to the resource is currently unknown,” according to a statement issued by the Great Parks of Hamilton County, which oversees the Oak Glen preserve. “The EPA is assessing the situation to determine appropriate action.”

Sunoco Logistics Asset Map. Source: Sunco website

The 1650-km pipeline runs from Longview, Texas (about 125 miles east of Dallas), to Samaria, Michigan about 12 miles north of Toledo, delivering crude oil to refineries, mostly in the U.S. Midwest, said the report.

Previous leaks

“A system-wide inspection of the 1,119-mile-long pipeline in 2009 resulted in the company paying a $48,700 fine in 2012 for failing to address corrosion problems in the pipeline at the Oregon refinery for three years.” CinCinnati.com said.

• October 2008: Burlington, KY. About  500,000 liters of crude oil leaked.
• January 2005: Carrollton, KY.  At least 1 million liters of oil leaked into the Kentucky River.

According to  Great Parks’ website the 364-acre Preserve comprises “rugged hills with a rich diversity of native trees, shrubs and wildflowers.”

Mass Evacuations Ordered as Pipeline Spews 2,000 Tons of Fuel

Massive pipeline leak prompts mass evacuations in SW China

About 2,000 tons of gasoline escaped  at a high-speed railway construction site after a construction tower collapsed snapping a pipeline in SW China’s Guizhou Province.

The pipeline damaged in the incident is owned by Sinopec, the country’s largest oil refiners,  said a report.

“Three people have received medical treatment, and more than 110 are working to repair the broken pipe and clear the site, which is about 30 meters from the Shanghai-Kunming railway and has residential houses nearby.”

The local government has ordered mass evacuations of residents within a two kilometer radius of the incident site, and rail authorities have suspended train services.

Pipeline explosions last Friday killed 55 people and left 145 others injured, with nine additional passersby reported as missing in the coastal city of Qingdao, east China’s Shandong Province. Source: NEWS.CN. More images ...

Other Sinopec Pipeline’s Deadly Explosions

Meantime, the China PetroChemical Corporation (Sinopec) announced it had suspended two company executives following the deadly pipeline explosions last Friday

The blasts killed 55 people and left 145 others injured, with nine additional passersby reported as missing in the coastal city of Qingdao, east China’s Shandong Province.

Related Links

• Global Disasters/ Significant Events – Nov. 23, 2013 November 23, 2013

Global Disasters/ Significant Events – October 12, 2013

Pipeline leak in North Dakota likely due to corrosion

The 20,600-barrel leak on Tesoro Logistics LP pipeline in North Dakota was probably caused by corrosion on the 20-year-old pipeline, state regulators said.

A farmer discovered oil gushing out of the six-inch pipeline, which carries oil from the Bakken shale play to the Stampede rail facility near Columbus, North Dakota, on September 29, said a report.

“This is the largest oil spill in the state since it became a major U.S. producer. It is the biggest oil leak on U.S. land since March, when an Exxon Mobil pipeline spilled 5,000 to 7,000 barrels of heavy Canadian crude in Mayflower, Arkansas.”

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Other Global Disasters/ Significant Events

Iraq Bloodbath

October casualties in the ongoing Iraqi violence so far stands at 381 civilians killed, and about 1,000 others wounded.

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Majority of U.S. Citizens say: “The hell with the Congress!”

Six in ten Americans say they would replace every single member of the U.S. Congress if they could, according to a new poll by NBC News and Wall Street Journal.

As for the state of U.S. economy over the next 12 months, 42 percent of the people believe it will get worse, while only 17 percent are optimistic, and 38 percent see no change.

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Conflicts of interest in the Syria debate

22 media commentators, and seven think tanks that participated in the media debate on whether the US should bomb Syria, had major  conflicts of interest, says Public Accountability Initiative.

The most egregious example cited is Stephen Hadley, former national security adviser to George W. Bush. “Hadley argued strenuously for military intervention in appearances on CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, and Bloomberg TV, and authored a Washington Post op-ed headlined ‘To stop Iran, Obama must enforce red lines with Assad.'”

“In each case, Hadley’s audience was not informed that he serves as a director of Raytheon, the weapons manufacturer that makes the Tomahawk cruise missiles that were widely cited as a weapon of choice in a potential strike against Syria. Hadley earns $128,500 in annual cash compensation from the company and chairs its public affairs committee. He also owns 11,477 shares of Raytheon stock, which traded at all-time highs during the Syria debate ($77.65 on August 23, making Hadley’s share’s worth $891,189).” The report said.

Hadley was presented to the audience as an experienced, independent national security expert, said the report. Read more…

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Fire-Earth Forecasts 10 Major Oil Spills to End 2011

Expect at Least One Cataclysmic Oil Spill Before End of 2011

Fire Earth Forecasts at Least 10 Major Oil Spills Worldwide between May 2010 and December 2011

• Global Forecast: 10 Major Oil Spills
• US Forecast:
  • Offshore: 3
    
  • Onshore: 2
• Max Severity: At east one cataclysmic spill

[NOTE: Each of the forecast leaks/spills would probably involve more than one oil company, due to the makeup of their contracts. However, the major parties involved would be Exxon (1-2 incidents), BP (1-2), chevron (1) others (1).]

Variables used in the calculations:

1. Recent oil spills including those linked to below
2. Rate of increase in
   • Human activity
   • Oil (and gas) Drilling
   • Climate Change
   • Global seismicity
   • Ice melt
   • Landslides
3. New Drilling
   • Drilling close to tectonic plate boundaries and fault zones
   • “Saturation drilling”
4. Overall increase in the frequency, volume and  severity of oil spills
5. The oil industry’s drive to maximize profit, which necessitates reducing costs by cutting corners and compromising safety.

A Representative List of Recent Oil Spills:

• Yellow River Contaminated by Diesel Leak Posted on January 4, 2010

• Oil Spills, Earthquakes and Faults Posted on October 31, 2009
• Gulf of Mexico receives its regular ration of oil spill Posted on October 22, 2009
• Australia Fails to Plug Oil Leak in Timor Sea Posted on October 14, 2009
• 4m liters of crude spill into French nature reserve Posted on August 8, 2009

More Links to Recent Oil Disasters

• Oil Disasters  Caused by Oil and gas Drilling, Oil Leaks, Spills and Contamination

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Gulf of Mexico Oil Leak – Update Apr 28

Prepared for another Major Disaster?

BP: Greedy Like Goldman Sachs

Why Should Big Oil Live to Pollute another Day?

If the economy is designed to serve the people [sic,] how is it that the monetary profit goes to a few and the debt to the environment?

If the leaks in the Gulf of Mexico oil well are not sealed, the spill could become one of the worst disasters  in US history: Coast Guard Rear Admiral Mary Landry

“… this could be one of the most significant oil spills in U.S. history,” she said.

BP, Transocean and rest of the gang should have at least had a fail-safe contingency plan to contain oil leaks and prevent damage to the environment. But they didn’t. Why? Because such things are expensive and hurt their bottom line.

Deepwater Summary and who said what:

• Crude oil is leaking from two  sources about 1,525m (5,000ft ) under the surface, which have been leaking since Deepwater Horizon platform exploded and sank, but were only discovered  on Saturday.

• The leaks are spewing at least 1,000 barrels of oil into the gulf of Mexico, near the coast of Louisiana.

• The resulting oil slick now has a circumference of more than 600 (1,000km) 650 miles covering  about 80,000 sq km (31,000 sq miles), “with areas of emulsified crude approximately 36 miles offshore the coast of Louisiana.”

• Weather conditions on April 27  hampered clean up operation with winds from northwest, and choppy seas with 3 to 4 foot waves.

• If the oil reached Louisiana coast, it could destroy coastal ecology, the wildlife and nature reserves, as well as the devastating the state’s fisheries, oyster beds and other marine-based livelihoods, according to an environmentalist at Tulane University.

• Sealing the leaks with remote-control robotic submersibles could take many months, said US Coast Guard Rear Adm Mary Landry, who is in charge of the clean-up operation.

• The Coast Guard is considering whether to burn off the oil corralled in the boom, “trying to minimize the environmental impact,” aid a Coast Guard spokesman.

• “The wind will nudge the oil slick more to the north-northwest,” said a  senior meteorologist at AccuWeather. “It might make it onshore over the southeast Louisiana coast first,” and could later pollute beaches in Mississippi, Alabama and Florida, he said.

• Other meteorologists also believe a shift in wind could drive the spill to Louisiana coast by the weekend.

Click images to enlarge

BP Horizon Response Current State(2). Source. Creative Commons license.

Related Links:

• Gulf of Mexico Oil Leak – Update Apr 27
• Disasters Caused by Oil and gas Drilling, Oil Spills, Leaks, Land, Water and Air Pollution
• Rig Explosion Suit Cites Criminal Negligence by BP, Others

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Serial No 1,635. Starting April 2010, each entry on this blog has a unique serial number. If any of the numbers are missing, it may mean that the corresponding entry has been blocked by Google/the authorities in your country. Please drop us a line if you detect any anomaly/missing number(s).