U.S. GOVERNMENT APPEALS JUDGE’S RULING ON SIZE OF BP OIL SPILL

SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2015

 

WASHINGTON, DC

The U.S. government is appealing a federal court ruling that reduced the potential penalty BP Plc must pay for the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill by almost $4 billion.

The appeal, which was filed on Friday in U.S. District Court in New Orleans, challenges a January decision by U.S. District Court Judge Carl Barbier that set the size of the spill at 3.19 million barrels. The appeal did not detail what aspects of Barbier's ruling it was challenging. 

The government had estimated the size of the spill at 4.09 million barrels and BP at 3.26 million.

BP could have been fined a maximum of $17.6 billion under the Clean Water Act but Barbier's ruling on the spill size lowered the potential figure to $13.7 billion.

BP has incurred more than $42 billion of costs for the spill, including for cleanup, fines and compensation for victims.  About 810,000 barrels were collected during the cleanup.

Source: www.reuters.com

MAGELLAN MIDSTREAM PARTNERS PIPELINE COMPANY HAS BEGUN CLEANING UP A SPILL OF 1,575 GALLONS OF DIESEL FUEL NEAR TEHUACANA CREEK AFTER A TWO-DAY INVESTIGATION DETERMINED ITS LEAKING PIPELINE WAS THE CAUSE OF A SHEEN ON A POND NEAR THE CREEK

FRIDAY, MARCH 13, 2015

TEHUACANA CREEK, TEXAS

Reported ‘sheen’ on Tehuacana Creek raises oil pipeline concerns.

The Texas Railroad Commission and private pipeline operators were looking for signs of a petroleum leak Thursday at Tehuacana Creek, a few miles east of Waco on State Highway 6. The commission, which oversees the oil and gas industry, got a call Wednesday from a pilot who had noticed a “sheen” on the flooded creek, commission spokeswoman Ramona Nye said. The pipeline companies joined the commission and the U.S. Department of Transportation in investigating the incident, and crews laid down foam “booms” across the creek to capture any surface pollution. However, no sheen was clearly visible from the ground Thursday, and Nye said the status of the investigation was unclear late that day.

Then a two-day investigation was implemented and the leak in the pipeline was discovered.

An Oklahoma-based pipeline company has begun cleaning up a spill of diesel fuel near Tehuacana Creek after a two-day investigation determined its leaking pipeline was the cause of a “sheen” on a pond near the creek.

Contractors with Magellan Midstream Partners found the leak Friday and were working to repair it while installing dikes and booms to contain the floating fuel, said officials with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

The TCEQ, which is overseeing the investigation and cleanup, did not have an estimate of how much diesel was spilled.  In a preliminary report to the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Magellan estimated that about 50 barrels had spilled, or 1,575 gallons.

Magellan spokesman Bruce Heine said Friday afternoon that the true size of the spill “appears to be well below the amount we originally reported to regulatory authorities.” He said the company is still investigating the cause of the spill.

A TCEQ spokesman said the spill appeared to be contained in a pond about 1,200 yards from Tehuacana Creek, and no fuel appeared to enter the creek or the Brazos River downstream.

The spill site, located north of State Highway 6 just east of Loop 340, is in a marshy floodplain, and contractors had to build a temporary road of plywood to get equipment in to do the work.

Four pipelines traverse the marshy Tehuacana Creek bottomlands north of Highway 6, according to a Texas Railroad Commission online map. ExxonMobil’s pipeline carries gasoline, while Explorer Pipeline Co., Magellan Pipeline Co. and Koch Pipeline Co. transport refined petroleum products through their pipes. 

 Magellan is one of four pipeline operators in the immediate area, and regulators asked all four to investigate after the spill was reported Wednesday evening.

A pilot for Koch Pipeline Company, one of the operators, spotted the sheen while doing a routine surveillance run over the pipeline, a federal pipeline safety official said.

Heine, the Magellan spokesman, said that when the company got the call Wednesday evening, it promptly discontinued use of the 10-inch-diameter pipeline, which runs from Frost to Hearne.

The leak was expected to be repaired by late Friday.

Source: wacotrib.com

VIRGINIA TRANSPORTATION CREWS WORK TO REPAIR POTHOLES TO REDUCE ROAD HAZARDS. NEW YORK MTA CREWS FILL POTHOLES ON BRIDGES AND IN TUNNELS IN A FLASH

MARCH 14, 2015

RICHMOND, VIRGINIA (AP)

The Virginia Department of Transportation says potholes across the state are no match for its repair crews.

Officials say crews and contractors are tracking thousands of potholes to fill them in order to reduce road hazards across more than 57,000 miles of pavement.

Officials say potholes are created when moisture weakens pavement by expanding during freezing;  when the snow plows clear the roads, they end-up scraping the expanded pavement, creating a localized pothole.  The  weakened pavement is also loosened by traffic and by stormwater, as it washes away the subbase.

Last year, VDOT patched more than 146,000 potholes statewide between March and May.

Repairs made during the winter and early spring are mostly temporary because materials used for permanent pothole repairs typically require warmer weather.

VDOT repairs potholes on state-maintained roads, which include interstates and most primary and secondary roads. Local governments are responsible for repairing potholes on their streets.

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AS OF MARCH 1, 2015, THE MTA REPORTS THAT THIS YEAR 1,418 POTHOLES HAVE BEEN PATCHED ON BRIDGE AND TUNNEL FACILITIES

MARCH 12, 2015

NEW YORK, NY

Potholes are the one sure sign that spring is almost here.

The craters can eat cars and filling the potholes can cause traffic problems.

MTA Bridges and Tunnels invited PIX11 News Reporter Greg Mocker for a ride with a road crew. The agency has two trucks with robot controlled arms to clear, clean and fill potholes on seven bridges and in the two tunnels. It sprays air and a mixture of tar and rock.

Crews can move quickly to the next job and it does not require major lane closures.

As of March 1, 2015, the MTA reports that this year 1,418 potholes have been patched on Bridge and Tunnel facilities; which is made up of 150 miles of roadway and 166 toll lanes.

There are a number of different approaches (and machines) that transportation agencies can use to tackle potholes.

The NYC Department of Transportation reports, as of Monday, 126,000 potholes have been repaired across the five boroughs. The city crews have to cover about 6,000 miles of streets.

NYC DOT has up to 50 crews out in any 24-hour period.  See a report on the work done by city crews at the DOT web pages.

Source:pix11.com

MANHOLE EXPLOSION SHUTS DOWN STREETS IN UNION TOWNSHIP DURING A ST. PATRICK’S DAY PARADE

MARCH 14, 2015

UNION TOWNSHIP, NEW JERSEY

A manhole explosion shut down several streets and prompted businesses to be evacuated in Union Township Saturday morning.  It happened during the St. Patrick’s Day parade.

A stretch of road from the corner of Stuyvesant to Morris avenues is closed in all directions, with additional closures along Morris Avenue.

PSEG crews and firefighters responded to the scene, and say the situation is under control.

Officials say the cause of blast and underground fire is most likely due to salt and water seeping into system. A number of businesses were evacuated but were allowed to go back as of 2 p.m. No injuries were reported.

The St. Patrick’s Day parade was delayed but still went on as planned.

Source: pix11.com/nj12news.com

Manhole fires and/or explosions are often triggered by salt or the melting mixture that leaks into the underground electrical system and corrodes wires, which then ignite from electric sparks created by arcing.

A lot of times after it snows and the snow melts, salt that is put down onto the sidewalk leaks into the system and can cause fires when it hits the equipment.

What it does is it eats away the insulation that prevents the different cables from touching each other.  Once the insulation is gone, you get this effect.

The flaming wiring can then release the dangerous gas, which can leak into neighboring buildings as it builds up pressure below the manhole.  If sufficient methane gas is buildup and there is a spark from an electric arcing, then it will cause it to explode.  

Oftentimes, the gas that is buildup is coming from the leaking natural gas piping.  In New Jersey, the gas infrastructure is very-very old in many places and it consists of the old cast iron pipes.  The useful life of these cast iron pipes has long expired and essentially we are under a Russian roulette situation waiting for the next explosion to happen should the right conditions come together: sufficient leaking gas; oxygen; and a spark.  Then, boom.