UPI en Español  |   UPI Asia  |   About UPI  |   My Account
Search:
Go

API defends pipeline safety records

|
 
Published: Nov. 15, 2012 at 8:38 AM

WASHINGTON, Nov. 15 (UPI) -- The U.S. oil and liquid fuels pipeline network has "an outstanding safety record" as industry leaders work on a zero-tolerance policy, a trade group said.

Peter Lidiak, director of pipelines for the American Petroleum Institute, said the oil and natural gas industry was working toward a "zero-incident safety record."

A string of pipeline spills in the United States have sparked concern about safety issues. A natural gas pipeline explosion in California in 2010 killed eight people and a Michigan oil pipeline spill that same year was the costliest onshore incident in the sector's history.

Lidiak, however, said pipelines are the safest way to transport crude oil and other petroleum products.

"The nation's crude oil and liquid fuels pipelines have an outstanding safety record and operators understand the need for continuous improvement," he said in a statement.

Accidents from 1999 to 2011, he said, were down by around 60 percent.

Writing for The Hill, Cindy Schild, a senior manager for downstream at API, said pipelines like the planned Keystone XL project to bring Canadian oil sands to U.S. refineries are more than talking points.

Keystone XL, she writes, "fills a critical infrastructure void as our nation moves toward becoming the largest oil producer in the world, creates much needed jobs, and meets --and exceeds -- both Canadian and American regulatory standards for pipeline safety."

Recommended Stories
© 2012 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Any reproduction, republication, redistribution and/or modification of any UPI content is expressly prohibited without UPI's prior written consent.

Order reprints
Join the conversation
Most Popular Collections
'Star Trek Into Darkness' screening NBC upfronts Met Ball 2013
'Great Gatsby' premieres in New York Spire raised on top of One WTC 2013: Celebrity break ups and divorces
Additional Energy Resources Stories
1 of 16
Flags-In Ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery
View Caption
Staff Sgt. Jeffrey Roskos with the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment, "The Old Guard," participates in the annual Flags-In ceremony, May 23, 2013, at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia. Soldiers place American flags in front of more than 260,000 gravestones in the cemetery in honor of Memorial Day. UPI/Kevin Dietsch
fark
Little girl's police officer father gets shot and killed in the line of duty, days before her kindergarten...
The mystery of the human body's most annoying sensation, itching, finally explained. And suddenly...
Is it possible to have a library with no books? Yup
The Skagit River Bridge, which is part of Interstate 5, has collapsed in Washington. People and...
Worst butt dial ever
Stalking a 15-year-old pupil for two straight years will get you banned from teaching for life....