Sabal Trail Transmission reps promise us their pipeline will be safe, but their parent company Spectra Energy has had twenty one incidents since 2006 for $8,564,246 in property damage, according to PHMSA, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline & Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.

That Final Order of 21 December 2012 to Spectra CEO Gregory L. Ebel for $134,500 for violating both federal regulations and Spectra’s own internal company policies was only a in the flaming bucket. Another, marked in red as MAT’L/WELD/EQUIP FAILURE, PUMP/COMPRESSOR-RELATED EQUIPMENT for $251,170 in property damage on 13 March 2012 in Marietta, York County, Pennsylvania, could be related to that compressor incident Spectra first said was nothing. Most of the others are about “internal corrosion” such as a Spectra employee says they never bothered to check for.

Here’s the current list of incidents from PHMSA, no doubt each with its own sordid story:

Serious Incidents are denoted in red.

TEXAS EASTERN TRANSMISSION LP (SPECTRA ENERGY CORP)
All Incidents(3)(4): 2006-2013

Date	System	City	State	County	Cause	Sub Cause	Fatalities	Injuries	Property Damage (A)	Value of Product Lost (B)
06/04/13	GT	OFFSHORE	OCS		CORROSION	INTERNAL CORROSION	0	0	$522,432	$22,432
03/27/13	GT	OFFSHORE	OCS		CORROSION	INTERNAL CORROSION	0	0	$552,580	$52,580
11/03/12	GT	OFFSHORE	OCS		CORROSION	INTERNAL CORROSION	0	0	$647,212	$47,212
10/24/12	GT	OFFSHORE	OCS		CORROSION	INTERNAL CORROSION	0	0	$269,974	$29,974
09/06/12	GT	OFFSHORE	OCS		CORROSION	INTERNAL CORROSION	0	0	$673,200	$73,200
09/01/12	GT	OFFSHORE	OCS		CORROSION	INTERNAL CORROSION	0	0	$444,913	$19,005
08/13/12	GT	OFFSHORE	OCS		CORROSION	INTERNAL CORROSION	0	0	$642,498	$42,498
04/19/12	GT	OFFSHORE	OCS		CORROSION	INTERNAL CORROSION	0	0	$339,188	$39,188
04/13/12	GT	MARIETTA	PA	YORK	MAT’L/WELD/EQUIP FAILURE	PUMP/COMPRESSOR-RELATED EQUIPMENT	0	1	$251,170	$1,170
05/04/11	GT	HALLETTSVILLE (15 MILES SOUTHE	TX	LAVACA	MAT’L/WELD/EQUIP FAILURE	MANUFACTURING-RELATED	0	0	$219,929	$43,490
12/19/10	GT	OFFSHORE	OCS		CORROSION	INTERNAL CORROSION	0	0	$661,268	$161,268
10/12/10	GT	TOMPKINSVILLE	KY	MONROE	OTHER OUTSIDE FORCE DAMAGE	VEHICLE NOT ENGAGED IN EXCAVATION	0	0	$131,004	$127,504
09/29/10	GT	OFFSHORE	OCS		CORROSION	INTERNAL CORROSION	0	0	$649,580	$49,580
09/16/10	GT	OFFSHORE	OCS		CORROSION	INTERNAL CORROSION	0	0	$302,400	$52,400
09/02/10	GT	OFFSHORE	OCS		CORROSION	INTERNAL CORROSION	0	0	$432,820	$32,820
06/20/10	GT	OFFSHORE	OCS		CORROSION	INTERNAL CORROSION	0	0	$861,268	$161,268
06/08/09	GT	OFFSHORE	LA		ALL OTHER CAUSES	MISCELLANEOUS CAUSE	0	0	$130,000	$1,000
10/01/08	GT	CLINTON	MS	HINDS	OTHER OUTSIDE FORCE DAMAGE	VEHICLE NOT ENGAGED IN EXCAVATION	0	0	$120,010	$120,000
07/12/08	GT	RED LION	OH	WARREN	MAT’L/WELD/EQUIP FAILURE	MALFUNCTION OF CONTROL/RELIEF EQUIPMENT	0	0	$55,100	$5,050
09/30/06	GT	OFFSHORE	N/A		MAT’L/WELD/EQUIP FAILURE	JOINT/FITTING/COMPONENT	0	0	$255,000	$5,000
04/09/06	GT	DELMONT	PA	WESTMORELAND	MAT’L/WELD/EQUIP FAILURE	NON-THREADED CONNECTION FAILURE	0	0	$402,700	$2,700
Totals							0	1	$8,564,246	$1,089,339

These incidents add up not only to $8,564,246 in property damage. They add up to a less than sterling reputation for safety. And these incidents are for only one of Spectra’s pipelines.

Maybe you should know this before you let them on your property. Maybe we should ask why Spectra hasn’t told us about any of these incidents.

-jsq

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