1) Pipelines face risks from earthquakes, including damage to welds from ground movement. Proper design criteria are needed to mitigate seismic risks, especially regarding welds. 2) Certain bacteria that eat plastic, like Spingomonas and Pseudomonas, may contribute to corrosion under disbonded polyethylene tape coatings on pipelines. More data is needed to understand this risk and potential mitigation measures. 3) Climate change is expected to increase risks to pipelines from more frequent and intense heat waves and rainfall. Proper consideration of these changes is important for safety.

1. Oil Pipeline Risks: Issues to consider
By Louisette Lanteigne
700 Star Flower Ave.
Waterloo Ont.
N2V 2L2
butterflybluelu@rogers.com

2. Issue #1: Seisemic Risks & Pipeline Welds

3. Seismic Risks of Eastern Canada
http://www.earthquakescanada.nrcan.gc.ca/zones/eastcan-eng.php

4. Earthquakes & Oil Pipes
Pipeline damages from earthquakes can result in compression or
wrinkling, joint weld cracking or separation, bending or shear from
localized wrinkling and tension. Joints made with oxy-acetelyne welds
break 100 times more than those with electric arc welded joints .
Source: USGS, The Shake Out Scenario Supplemental Study
http://books.google.ca/books/about/The_ShakeOut_Scenario_Supplemental_Study.html?id=7PU1A6N3ZOAC&redir_esc=y

5. An earthquake occurs in the Western Quebec Seismic Zone
every five days on average.
http://www.earthquakescanada.nrcan.gc.ca/zones/eastcan-eng.php

6. A REVIEW OF NBCC 2005 SEISMIC HAZARD RESULTS FOR CANADA - THE INTERFACE
TO THE GROUND AND PROGNOSIS FOR URBAN RISK MITIGATION
John Adams and Stephen Halchuk
Geological Survey of Canada, Natural Resources Canada,

7. Earthquake risks should be identified within
EA applications of pipelines so we can set
reasonable design criteria to mitigate the
risks, particularly with regards to pipeline
welds.

8. Issue #2: Bacterium & PE tape

9. Spingomonas and Pseudomonas Eat Plastic
In May 2008, 16 year old
Canadian boy named Daniel
Burd from Waterloo Collegiate
Institute found and isolated two
naturally occurring bacterium,
Spingomonas and
Pseudomonas, that literally eats
plastic.
He stored Spingomonas and
Pseudomonas at 37 degree
Celsius with plastic and in six
weeks time, 43% of the plastic
was consumed.
http://wiki.duke.edu/download/attachments/10715770/08burdreport.pdf

10. Spingomonas and Pseudomonas
naturally occurs in Canadian soil and water.
Enbridge pipelines travel across farmlands and waterways. These
areas are suitable for Spingomonas and Pseudomonas because the
bacterias thrives off nitrates in these locations.
To read Daniel Bird's study please visit here:
https://wiki.duke.edu/download/attachments/10715770/08BurdReport.pdf

11. Example of a PE tape issue;
Kalamazoo Michigan Enbridge Oil Spill, 2010
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determines that the
probable cause of the pipeline rupture was corrosion fatigue cracks
that grew and coalesced from crack and corrosion defects under dis-
bonded polyethylene tape coating, producing a substantial crude oil
release that went undetected by the control centre for over 17 hours .

12. Questions:
Is there any data to either prove or disprove the role that
Spingomonas and Pseudomonas may play in regards to “tenting”
issues of PE tape?
Warmer weather and longer growing seasons associated with climate
change may serve to increase the presence of these bacterium in the
natural environment. If these bacteria are an issue, what measures
can we take to avert risk in existing pipes?
How can we monitor for issues related to this?

13. Issue #3: Climate Change:
Plan for hotter, wetter weather

14. Example: Rain and extream heat expected for the city
of Toronto by 2040
Toronto will see almost 40 days per year with a
humidex over 40˚C (current average is 9 per year).
Heat waves (3+ days of 32˚C) will occur 5 times a
year, instead of once every two years.
We'll see 80% more summer rain in July, 50% more in
August.
Extreme rain events will almost triple in size to
166mm in 24hrs from the current 66 mm.

15. Source: TORONTO'S FUTURE WEATHER & CLIMATE
DRIVER STUDY: OUTCOMES REPORT
Summary of the SENES
Consultants Ltd Study by
Toronto Environment Office
October 30, 2012
http://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2012/pe/bgrd/backgroundfile-51653.pdf

16. Enbridge's 'Line 9' pipeline exposed in the Rouge River,
Toronto. Credit: Adam Scott/Environmental Defence

17. Pipelines and Aquifers: the need to examine
groundwater influences of subsurface geology

18. Topography isn't enough to delineate
watersheds or prevent water risks.
.

19. Draw down effects bring contaminates towards the nearest wells
regardless of topography. Professor Mike Stone: chloride loadings to
Waterloo Regional wells reveals this fact.

20. Understanding the subsurface geology and localized well
data in proximity to pipes can help contain spills.
Mapping subsurface geology is critical data to have in
order to quickly and reasonably isolate and contain spills.
It allows us to view which aquifers may be impacted,
which wells to shut off to immediately stop the draw down
spread of contaminates shoud a spill occur.
EA processes could mandate that firms have that data
prior to final approvals in order to make sure they are
reasonably capable of swift responses should a spill occur
along that route.

21. Arctic Risk #1 Upheaval buckling
Thermal expansion occurs when a buried steel pipeline is
operated at a temperature and pressure higher than that
experienced during installation. In hard frozen areas the pipeline
is not free to expand so the axial compressive force serves to
push the pipe up leading to risks of ruptures.

22. Arctic Risk #2: Ice gouging by pressure ridges
and icebergs in shallow water depths.

23. Arctic Risk #3: Permafrost thaw settlement.

24. Arctic Risk #4 Strudel Scour
Strudel scour occurs when fresh water in rivers and streams flows over frozen ice along the
shores. The overflow water drains through cracks, holes, even breathing holes in ice sheets
eroding supporting sediments underneith pipes.

25. What is a reasonable depth to avoid these risks?
Based on the literature review of the research on subgouge
deformations, the industry is still in need of direct rule of thumb that
provides safe and economical burial depth for pipelines. From one
hand, pipes must be trenched sufficiently far beneath the influence
zone of soil displaced below ice keel to limit pipe bending to
acceptable limits. On the other hand, designers must not go to an
over-conservative solution and consequently a non-economical
one. Therefore, the desired burial depth is the minimum depth
needed for the survival of the pipeline during its design life time.
Such depth has not been established.
Source: The Technical Challenges of Designing Oil and Gas
Pipelines in the Arctic - Basel Abdalla PhD PE, Paul Jukes PhD,
Ayman Eltaher PhD PE, and Billy Duron

26. Issue #5: The Public Finds the Spills.
A newly published draft report by the US department of
Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety
Administration reveals that it is up to the public to find oil and gas
leaks.
Pipeline leaks, ruptures and spills are “systematically causing more
and more property damage…in a bad year you can have up to $5
billion in property damages due to pipeline related accidents.”
Given the volume of public property damage, pipeline companies
would be “probably justified” in spending $490,000 a year for every
400 miles of pipeline but the reality is that “right now companies might
spend a tenth of that figure."
Here is a published news article regarding this:
http://oilandgas-investments.com/2012/energy-services/leak-detection-pipeline-industry/

27. Here is the link to the actual Draft report:
U.S. Department of Transportation
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration
Draft Report: Leak Detection Study – DTPH56-11-D- 000001
Dr. David Shaw, Dr. Martin Phillips, Ron Baker, Eduardo Munoz,
Hamood Rehman, Carol Gibson, Christine Mayernik
September 28, 2012
https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/meetings/FilGet.mtg?fil=397
This report clearly shows that we need more money invested in prevention
and better science to reasonably mitigate the risks!