FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, Sept. 7, 2006
Contact: In DC - Brandon MacGillis (202) 225-4431
In CO - Chris Arend (303) 844-4988 
 
 
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Representative Diana DeGette (D-CO) released the following remarks concerning the House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Committee hearing on British Petroleum’s pipeline spills at Prudhoe Bay, AK.

“The story unfolding at Prudhoe Bay in recent months has grown more alarming as new facts have emerged.  As we’ve heard this morning from our distinguished chairman and ranking member, it appears that this whole mess was preventable.  Had BP exercised even basic periodic maintenance of its pipelines, it would not have had to order the shutdown of the country’s number one oilfield.  This decision roiled the international financial markets, and it came just as consumers were hoping to feel some relief as the summer driving season winds down.

“We are here today to find out what happened, why it happened, and make sure it doesn’t happen again.

“We are all well aware of BP’s aggressive advertising campaign portraying it as the environmentally responsible and socially conscious oil company.  Why, then, did it allow the condition of its low-stress pipeline to deteriorate to the point of a corrosion-induced spill of 270,000 gallons of crude oil?  These pipes are in such poor condition, we are now told, that they need to be fully replaced. 

“As I mentioned, this was all preventable.  Mr. Chairman, it is my understanding that “smart-pigging,” though relatively inexpensive, is the single best way to detect even the slightest amount of corrosion.  I am no engineer, but it seems to me this high-tech procedure gives quite a bang for the buck, and it perplexes me that these lines haven’t been ‘pigged,’ in some cases, since 1992.

“I would think that the potential damage to BP’s infrastructure, reputation, and bottom line would be enough to compel it to take care of its pipes.  But that is apparently not the case.  I applaud BP’s efforts to be move “beyond petroleum”, to help foster a more sustainable energy future, and to become a truly compassionate corporate leader.  Maybe it should begin by sticking to the basics, and begin to focus on rudimentary pipe maintenance as much as it has on PR.

“BP will undoubtedly assure us today that its corrosion prevention methodology in the run-up to this crisis was fully compliant with existing regulations.  I look forward to hearing from the DOT about the adequacy of those very regulations.  However, I am also very interested in hearing the testimony from the operator of the Trans-Alaska pipeline, who “pigs” their lines every three years. 

“BP may have believed that using “coupons” and ultra-sonic testing were sufficient to protect its infrastructure, but other industry leaders went above and beyond regulatory requirements, properly maintained their pipes, and have avoided the problems seen in recent months.

“I am glad that the Department of Transportation is able to join us today.  The Department has done a stellar job in responding to this crisis and deserves credit for its rapid response.  While I am pleased with the DOT’s new regulations issued in the aftermath of the Prudhoe Bay spill and subsequent shutdown, I fear they might not be adequate. 

“I am also dismayed with what has become an even more reactionary federal government.  It seems we have a tendency to ignore major issues like this, exercise limited oversight, and only after a crisis happens we jump to fix a problem that should have been prevented in the first place.

“Perhaps we should have seen this coming.  I hope to hear from the federal officials today whether we should have predicted an oil spill like this, given lax regulation of these low-pressure lines in unpopulated areas.

“The United States Congress is not blameless in this fiasco, either.  The Pipeline Safety Act reauthorization has languished before us for months.  I hope some good will come out of this mess; namely the passage of this important legislation sooner rather than later.

“Mr. Chairman, I look forward to probing these and other issues more deeply today.  I appreciate your willingness to schedule this most important hearing, and I thank the witnesses for their willingness to appear before this committee.”

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