Colonial Pipeline Donates 30 Acres To Offset Massive Fuel Spill Impact in Mecklenburg County
After causing the largest gas spill in U.S. pipeline history, Colonial Pipeline Company plans to give 30 acres to Mecklenburg County. The 2020 leak released 2 million gallons into the ground. Two teenagers riding ATVs discovered the spill near Oehler Nature Preserve on August 14, 2020. What began as a 63,000-gallon estimate grew to a massive 2 million gallons once workers dug deeper.
Officials will vote on accepting the land next January. The leak happened when an old repair patch, known as a “Type A sleeve,” cracked open, letting fuel leak out without detection. The company’s detection equipment missed the leak, similar to previous incidents in three other states. Most spills are found by people in the area rather than high-tech detection systems.
Federal transportation officials now want tighter monitoring of repairs and better leak detection. While new rules require detection equipment on federal pipelines, companies won’t have to rush to put it in place. The company’s history follows them, a 1999 South Carolina spill cost them $54 million in penalties and settlements.
“We cannot allow a tragic mess like this to happen again. Our state can and should monitor aging hazardous liquid pipelines, rather than rely solely on the pipeline company and the federal government to be our watchdogs,” State Senator Marcus said to WFAE. “My bill calls on the NC DEQ to study what can be done at the state level to protect us in the future.”
The huge size of this spill has forced safety experts to examine problems in how the entire industry detects leaks. Many believe current rules aren’t enough to prevent disasters before they occur.
