Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, during the last year and a half, a series of tragic failures have made it clear that we need stronger pipeline safety laws. Pipeline failures have occurred all across the country. From California and Montana to Michigan and Pennsylvania, we've seen natural gas pipeline explosions and ruptured oil pipelines spilling oil into rivers. In July 2010, a crude oil pipeline ruptured near Marshall, Michigan. Over 800,000 gallons of oil spilled into the Talmadge Creek and then flowed into the Kalamazoo River. The river is still being cleaned up. In September 2010, a natural gas pipeline ruptured and exploded in San Bruno, California. Eight people died; many more were injured. The gas-fed inferno spread from house to house, driven by the wind. Thirty- eight homes were destroyed and 70 more were damaged. The explosion left behind a suburban street with a massive crater and burned-out vehicles. The vice chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board described it as ``an amazing scene of destruction.'' This past summer, an ExxonMobil pipeline ruptured in Montana, spilling crude oil into the Yellowstone River. Unfortunately, those are just a few of the major accidents we have seen during the past 18 months. This bill will update and strengthen our pipeline safety laws in the aftermath of these tragedies.…”