The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“OIL PIPELINE SAFETY” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Transportation was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H612-H613 on March 1, 2000.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
OIL PIPELINE SAFETY
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Metcalf) is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. METCALF. Mr. Speaker, 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. My bipartisan bill, which has been cosponsored by the entire Washington State House delegation, will enact much needed reforms to our Federal pipeline regulations, and will give the States a role in pipeline regulation, which they currently lack.
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Under my bill, pipelines will be required to be inspected both internally and with hydrostatic tests. Pipelines with a history of leaks will be specially targeted for more strenuous testing. All pipeline operators will be tested for qualifications and certified by the Department of Transportation.
The results of pipeline tests and inspections will be made available to the public and a nationwide map of all pipeline locations will be placed on the Internet where every citizen can easily access it. All pipeline ruptures and spills of more than 40 gallons will be reported to the Federal Office of Pipeline Safety and States will be able to set up their own pipeline safety programs for interstate pipelines, provided that the States have the resources and expertise necessary to carry out the programs and that State standards are at least as stringent as Federal standards.
In addition, the bill requires studies on a variety of technologies that may improve safety such as external leak detection systems and double-walled pipelines. I urge my colleagues to join with me in support of this bipartisan legislation.
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