Last month’s gas pipeline explosion that killed eight people and torched 55 homes in San Bruno, Calif., cast doubt on the mathematical models used by utilities to predict which pipelines are most vulnerable, the Los Angeles Times reports.
The failed segment of the 30-inch diameter pipeline — which released an explosive force more powerful than the thrust of a space shuttle at launch — had not been identified by Pacific Gas and Electric Co., its owner, as being one of the 100 top safety priorities in its system. According to some experts, that points to a breakdown in its inspections and analytical models, said the Times.
The industry worships these models,” said Robert Bea, a professor of civil engineering at UC Berkeley and a member of the National Academy of Engineering because of his pioneering work in risk analysis. “They are treated as theology.”
The disaster also has raised questions about whether states are equipped to handle the job of pipeline regulation, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, a thinly staffed branch of the Department of Transportation, delegates responsibility for pipeline safety to the states, and some state regulators don’t seem to be up to the task.
The Journal reports that in California, where pipelines are regulated by the California Public Utilities Commission, only nine inspectors are on staff to keep tabs on over 100,000 miles of pipelines.
In addition to the understaffing, the inspectors working for California were far less strict than they might have been. From 2004 to 2009, despite more than 700 “probable violations” of pipeline regulations, each of which could result in a $20,000 penalty, the state didn’t issue a single fine, The Journal said.
Richard Clark, who leads the CPUC’s consumer protection and safety division, says that the idea that the agency is asleep at the switch or overly protective of businesses is unfounded.
“I can assure you we haven’t taken our eye off the ball and we haven’t been in bed with utilities,” he said.
