Lee Metcalf: “Oil and gas pipeline accidents happen more often than we might think. Just within the past few weeks, two major pipeline…”

“Oil and gas pipeline accidents happen more often than we might think. Just within the past few weeks, two major pipeline spills have occurred. On February 5, an oil pipeline spilled approximately 70,000 gallons of crude oil into a lake in the John Heinz Wildlife Refuge near Philadelphia. The refuge incorporates the largest freshwater tidal marsh in the State and is habitat to two endangered species. On January 27, approximately 500,000 gallons of oil leaked from a pipeline near Winchester, Kentucky. Officials are unsure how much of the oil will make its way into the Kentucky River, the main drinking water source for Lexington and other towns. Thankfully, neither of these spills were ignited, like the spill which occurred in my district last June. The accident in my district resulted in three deaths, millions of dollars in property damage. How many more spills do we need to have before we act to improve our system of pipeline safety? Recently, I introduced H.R. 3558, the Safe Pipelines Act of 2000.”