pegasus south pipeline re-start problems
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Big Oil had worked hard and doubtless paid a lot of money to ensure the Pegasus Pipe Line is reopened. Exxon plans to reopen the 210 mile southern leg between Corsicana and Nederland (near Beaumont,) Texas on July 1st, 2014. But the question we should be asking as Independence Day approaches must be “Is it safe?”TRANSCRIPT
Pegasus South Pipeline Restart
Path to Perpetual Problems
Saturday, June 28, 2014
No. 10 -Friday Night Special - (Early and Urgent) Charles and David are panting for
Pegasus, reopening Tuesday, July 1st.
Big Oil had worked hard and doubtless paid a lot of money to ensure the Pegasus Pipe Line is
reopened. Exxon plans to reopen the 210 mile southern leg between Corsicana and Nederland
(near Beaumont,) Texas on July 1st, 2014. But the question we should be asking as Independence
Day approaches must be “Is it safe?”
There are many reasons why it is insane to accept the self-evaluation of Big Oil, and especially
Charles and David Koch, on whether or not the Pegasus Pipeline can be safely operated.
First, there is the issue of honesty. Why would anyone believe the Koch’s or their close
associates when the Koch Method, the strategies which brought them all this success, includes
ensuring their employees lie, cheat and steal? Horrifying and incredible as this sounds there is
plenty of evidence to back it up.
An article in Bloomberg, titled, Koch Brothers Flout Law Getting Richer With Secret Iran Sales,
written by Asjylyn Loder and David Evans, appearing October 3, 2011, included several
instances which illustrate the enormous divide between what Charles, David, and other
representatives of Koch say, versus how they operate within Koch Industries.
The article provided a statement from Phil Dubose, a Koch employee. Dubose, who testified
against the company, saying he and his colleagues were shown by their managers “how to steal
and cheat -- using techniques they called the Koch Method. “
If they encourage these illegal acts it would be insane to trust anything said, either by them
personally, or by any representative of Koch Industries or their associates.
Second, what we know about the age and fitness of Pegasus.
The Pegasus is over 60 years old. Both the materials of which pipe lines and people are made are
subject to aging. You know, the joints start to give out along with the colon and bladder. Things
just start falling apart and leaking.
I'm going to give you a visual on this so you will see the point. Visuals are really good things
because we get the point so much faster.
Here is the Pegasus Pipe Line when it was first build. Shiny and new, its seams and joints
would, hopefully, withstand the pressure for which it was designed, just like the image below
despite the daunting example of the Keystone Pipeline which has already experienced leaks.
The Young Pegasus Pipe Line
But as time passes, the body ages. Those firm muscles, fast reactions, and stamina, especially
stamina, decline until the smallest incident can leave the former athlete flat on their face or
dependent on a cane for support, lest they break something important, or which they still hope is
important.
The Pegasus Pipe Line Today
There is no point denying it, now is there?
The Pegasus Pipeline is not only past the age to receive Social Security, it is way past its age of
retirement and it has been forced to carry twice the pressure for which it was designed. So it is
hardly fair to expect there not to be....well, incidents. The Pegasus might even need Depends or
other pads to ensure a reasonable amount of security and prevent leaks.
Now, we will get into the kind of incident, very much like Mayflower, Arkansas, we can
expect.
Pinewood Estates Mayflower-sized Spill
Let’s assume a spill about the size of the one which occurred in Mayflower, Arkansas on March
29th
2013 which hypothetically takes place under the upscale subdivision of Pinewood Estates
about 10 miles NW of Beaumont, Texas.
Pinewood Index Maps
Pegasus South Pipeline (in black) Index Map
As shown above, the Pegasus South leg of the pipeline is about 205 miles long and 20 inches in
diameter built in 1954 (60 years old). Along this route we chose Pinewood Estates because the
subdivision was built on top of the pipeline and the pipe crossing is exposed nearby at Little Pine
Island Bayou.
Section of Pegasus South Line Exposed at Pinewood Estates
These are the type of areas where old pipelines are most likely to break!
Pinewood Regional Map
Ironically, Pinewood Estates is only about 5 miles east of the town of Sour Lake, the oldest
surviving town in Hardin County, famous as the birthplace of Texaco and also home to one of
the biggest sinkholes in Texas. Today, the Sour Lake oilfield is the oldest continuously-
producing oil field in the world with hundreds if not thousands of wells drilled since the early
1900’s.
Oil derricks at Sour Lake, circa 1910
It also happens to sit on a large salt dome which makes the whole region somewhat unstable and
susceptible to subsidence. This area is particularly risky after the withdrawal of nearly 100
million barrels of oil and untold hundreds of millions of barrels of water saltwater produced for
operations and freshwater extracted for drinking. This was clearly not an ideal location for the
Pegasus pipeline even 60 years ago.
Pinewood Estates Index Map
As shown above on the index map, Pinewood Estates was a designated census place in the 2010
census with a population of nearly 1700 people. Virtually none of these homes were built when
the Pegasus went in over 60 years ago. Most were not even there in 2005 (see Google Earth
image below).
June 2005 – Earliest Color Image Feb 2013 – Most Recent Image Avail.
Here, we look over Pinewood Estates from 2013, pretty much as it is today, compared to 2005
when only a few houses were built.
Below you can see the entire time sequence as the neighborhood developed over the pipeline
from 2013 to 1989 when building had not yet started but the Pegasus Pipeline was, ominously,
already lurking beneath the verdant fields.
Pegasus South Neighborhood
Time Series
Pinewood Estates – NW Beaumont
Feb 2013 – Most Recent Image
Nov 2011
Jan 2009
Nov 2006
June 2005
Feb 1995
Earliest Image - Feb 1989
But they are there now, built right over the Pegasus pipeline (shown in yellow below) because
Exxon does not want everyone to know where it is. Security, you know. The reason for Exxon
and Koch 'security' measures is to lower the potential for liability. What victims don't know can't
impact their bottom line.
Feb 2013 GoogleEarth Close-up of Pinewood Estates
Pinewood Estates Regional Map Showing Site of Possible Break and Existing Leak
See that interesting little yellow outline with "Pinewood Estates," written over it? We're going to
see next what this portends for this very nice neighborhood where people chose to live entirely
unaware of what was flowing beneath their homes.
Drum roll and ominous overtones....
Pinewood Estates Mayflower-sized Spill
Since 1989, Exxon and the Koch Brothers knew a housing development was growing over the
Pegasus. As experts in their own industry they knew the hazards associated with exposure to
Hydrogen Sulfide, Toluene, and Benzene. But they said nothing to the families who believed
they were safe in the homes for which they had paid good money.
No one in the industry had forgotten about the pipe line or its age. Certainly, Charles Koch
understands the impact of age on the human body and as an engineer, a graduate of M.I.T., he
had to understand the impact of aging on pipes. As older pipelines are more likely to fail it is
appropriate that we model the consequences of catastrophic failure in this area.
ALOHA is the system freely available which provides essential information in just minutes on
how far the toxic chemicals from a spill will spread, as seen below.
As you look over these three images you can see why this information should be available to
local HazMat Units and those living within the hazard zone. Tough to do when the location of
pipes is less important than the 'security' of Big Oil.
The following series of maps show the extent of air pollution plumes in the first hour after a
hypothetical pipeline break after reopening the Pegasus South leg. In addition, the calculated
threat zone distances and Acute Exposure Guideline Levels (AEGLs) for each substance are
shown from the Aloha Emergency Planning models. The threat zones are shown for the toxic
gasses hydrogen sulfide, benzene and toluene which were modeled based on a Mayflower-sized
spill of roughly 200,000 gallons of Wabasca Heavy Tar Sands Oil. This seems like a reasonable
estimate given that the 20” Pegasus Pipeline is capable of transporting more than 3.75 million
barrels of Tar Sands per day.
Pinewood H2S Threat Zones
Hydrogen Sulfide Threat Zone
This is a very large threat zone and Hydrogen Sulfide is a poison. This is not the sort of thing
your children should be inhaling, even for a very short time.
This is why we are proposing legislation which takes into account the very limited trust which
should be granted to such corporations as Exxon and Koch Industries.
Benzene Threat Zones
Not only does a Tar Sands spill of this type put toxic benzene in the air as shown by the threat
zones, there is also a high probability of water contamination. The water pollution would begin
at the first contact with streams near the pipeline break and continue downstream for a distance
over a mile. The area shaded in blue above is extrapolated from the Mayflower water pollution
pathway and superimposed on the bayou which runs along Pinewood Estates. It should be used
for planning purposes only and the actual contamination could be greater or less than the model
depending on the volume of the spill and the wind strength and direction etc.
Toluene Threat Zones
How many people will suffer immediately from the effects of these three potent toxic chemicals
if, as is not unlikely, a break takes place along the Pegasus Pipeline under their homes?
How many will suffer long-term medical problems which shorten their lives and the lives of their
children?
Too many. Externalizing costs by irresponsible corporations, such as Koch Industries and
Exxon, must stop NOW.
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David Lincoln
Melinda Pillsbury-Foster
Green Fields Renewal
July 2014