Quote:nemonowan wrote:From a safety and enviromental POV, there are two criteria to look at it:
Quote:That is one reason why I think that the opponents of the Keystone XL pipeline aren't thinking through thoroughly. I've gotten into some arguments with some friends on this who in my opinion are not analyzing the situation versus going into this default ideologically blinkered view that the keystone XL is bad for the environment. This of course ignoring that as far as transporting oil is concerned a pipeline is by far environmentally safer than having it travel by rail...Actually, besides whatever proportion of "make it pass through someone elses backyard" local protesters, most opponents of the Keystone XL pipeline want that oil to not be transported at all.Because leaving those canadian tar sands in the ground is MONUMENTALLY less damaging that any kind of transportation.You see, if the pipeline gets built that means that there is a cheap way to take the oil from where it is manufactured (and I use that word deliberately) to where it is sold. Therefore, it becomes rentable to exploit it, so it WILL be exploited. No pipeline, no (or at least much less) tar sands exploitation.
1) Severity - You look at what the magnitude of a pipe line spill is going to be. It could be just a few droplets weeping out to a full blown rupture. Where? Above or below ground? How close to the ground aquifers? How any barrells are we talking about. What time of the year? How fast was the company's emergency action?
Worse case scenario, would be a large scale rupture that went on for several days that wasn't detected over a large scale area near water sources. Especially if it got into drinking water sources. If you don't think it has not happened before, believe me it has.
2. Probability - What is the likelihood of it happening That is going to depend on a lot of factors, from the physical intergrity of the pipe to how well the safety program is written out and implemented/ how well trained is the company to responding to emergencies and what their safety attitude is. The older the pipeline, the active surveillance a company has to do. Which costs money. and if profits are falling and cost cutting becomes the norm, gues what will happen?
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