Most people rarely think about the miles of underground pipelines that crisscross the country. They should. Residents of San Bruno, Calif., learned just how important and dangerous those pipelines can be last week when an enormous explosion followed by a devastating fire almost leveled an entire neighborhood. The catastrophe left at least four confirmed dead and tens of millions of dollars in property damage in its wake. It is a scenario that easily and increasingly could be repeated in many other locales.
The possibility of an exploding pipeline is real. According to industry sources, pipeline companies in the United States operate over 300,000 miles of pipe. The pipelines transport over 148 billion cubic feet of gas per day from producing regions to consuming regions. Sooner or later, there is going to be a problem of some sort in an operation of that scale.
One obviously occurred in San Bruno along a pipeline operated Pacific Gas & Electric Co. Company officials and federal authorities are investigating why a portion of the pipeline ruptured and set off the ensuing firestorm. One possibility is worrisome, even frightening.
The San Bruno pipeline was more than 50 years old, about the life expectancy for the metal pipe that transports natural gas. It’s conceivable that there was structural failure brought on by age-related stress. If that’s the case, there’s cause for concern. Much of the nation’s above and below ground infrastructure – bridges, roads, tunnels, sewers, etc. – is in many instances of roughly the same vintage and in a similar stage of decline.
Infrastructure failure, in fact, is a growing phenomenon. One heavily publicized event was a bridge collapse in Minnesota. Another was a steam pipe explosion that tore an huge hole in a busy Manhattan street. Similar age-related failures are likely to become more frequent.
The San Bruno pipeline was buried half a century ago, a time when much of the nation’s most heavily utilized infrastructure was designed and built. Its useful life is nearing an end and there’s been no expansion of clearly needed inspection and maintenance programs. Indeed, the latter are often given short shrift.
Though both federal and state regulations govern pipeline operations, much of the inspection work still is left up to the pipeline companies. Some are diligent, but others often are reluctant to report or repair problems. PG&E has announced it will put aside $100 million to compensate those whose lives were disrupted by last week’s blast, but that’s pocket change for a major company. The money might have been better spent inspecting and repairing pipelines over the years before disaster struck.
Area residents should heed the lessons of San Bruno. There are two major pipelines buried in parts of Chattanooga and Hamilton County, according to a Chattanooga Fire Department spokesman. There is no indication that either is an imminent or long-term threat to the public, but the California debacle strongly suggests that public officials and citizens should be far more aware of the pipelines beneath their homes and businesses – and of the significant danger they can pose.