Feds warned Enbridge to improve pipeline safety

[BeatleBoot]

http://www.detnews.com/article/20100731/METRO/7310395/Feds-warned-Enbridge-to-improve-pipeline-safety

Detroit -- U.S. regulators earlier this year demanded improvements to the pipeline network that includes a segment that ruptured in southern Michigan, spilling hundreds of thousands of gallons of oil into the Kalamazoo River, according to a document released Saturday.

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, the U.S. Department of Transportation's regulatory arm, said it had summoned Enbridge Inc. executives in February to discuss problems with the 1,900-mile Lakehead system. Enbridge owns the pipeline that burst, sending oil into Talmadge Creek, which flows into the Kalamazoo River.

The pipeline safety agency informed Enbridge in January that it might have violated safety codes by improperly monitoring corrosion in the pipeline.

The Environmental Protection Agency estimates more than 1 million gallons of crude escaped, while the Canadian company puts the total at 820,000 gallons.


<more>