Kentucky Forms Pipeline Safety Committee
On January 27th, a 22" pipeline ruptured 50 feet from the banks of the Kentucky River and spewed crude oil for 10 minutes before pipeline operators noticed the problem and were able to shut down the pipeline. 82,000 gallons of crude oil spilled into the Kentucky River midway between Cincinnati, OH and Louisville, KY. The spill reached the Ohio River where it entered the intake valves of Louisville's water supply. Back in November, a 4" Kentucky-West Virginia Gas Company natural gas pipeline exploded in Floyd County. Five homes were damaged and nine people were injured in that blast.
Shortly after the spill into the Kentucky River the Pipeline Safety Trust provided concerned citizens and reporters in the area with information about Kentucky's pipeline safety record. Turns out that over the last five years Kentucky has averaged $2,700 per year of property damage per mile of liquid pipeline. That's five and a half times the national average. Kentucky also averaged 530 gallons spilled per mile of liquid pipeline, three and a half times the national average, and during that same five-year period natural gas pipelines in Kentucky caused nearly $13,000,000 dollars of property damage, killed two people, and injured four others. The Trust's Op-Ed in the Lexington Herald Leader can be found at: http://pstrust.org/library/archives/kentucky_oped.htm. Armed with this information citizens called upon the Governor to act to improve pipeline safety in Kentucky.
On March 18th the Governor of Kentucky, Ernie Fletcher, formed the 10 person Kentucky Pipeline Safety Advisory Committee to examine how pipeline incidents affect public health and safety, as well as natural resources. Kentucky is the second state in the union to form such a committee. It's duty is to hold public meetings, gather recommendations, and suggest improvements to the federal government which oversees interstate pipelines. Of the Committee Governor Fletcher said "I expect the committee to be diligent in its efforts to evaluate and identify opportunities to improve pipeline safety and help prevent future tragedies that could take innocent life or degrade the Commonwealth's natural resources."
We are glad the Trust could play a part in the establishment of such a Committee.
