intermodal safety in the transport of oil
TRANSCRIPT
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Intermodal safety in
the transport of oil
by Diana Furchtgott-Roth
and Kenneth P. Green
ENERGY TRANSPORTATION
STUDIES IN
October 2013
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Studies in EnergyTransportation
October 2013
Intermodal Safety in
the Transport of Oil
by Diana Furchtgott-Roth and Kenneth P. Green
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Contents
Executive summary / iii
Introduction / 1
Conclusion / 14
References / 15
About the author & Acknowledgments / 20
Publishing information / 21
Supporting the Fraser Institute / 22
Purpose, funding, & independence / 23
About the Fraser Institute / 24
Editorial Advisory Board / 25
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Executive summary
Rising oil and natural gas production in North America is outpacing the
transportation capacity o our pipeline inrastructure. As one o us (Green)
discussed in a previous study in this series, Te Canadian Oil ransport
Conundrum, Canada is poised to dramatically increase production o
bitumen rom oil sand deposits in Western Canada (2013). In the ace o
expanding production and pipeline bottlenecks, more oil is moving by rail
in both Canada and the United States, but transport o oil by rail (or other
non-pipeline transportation modes) carries its own set o risks. While pipe-
lines may leak, trains and trucks can crash, hurting individuals, as we saw in
Lac-Mgantic in July 2013, and barges can sink. Tere is no perectly risk-ree
way to transport oil, or anything else or that matter.
Although North America is home to 825,000 kilometres o pipeline
in Canada and 4.2 million kilometres in the US, US government authorities
still insist on blocking additional pipeline construction.
Data to compare the saety o transportation o oil and gas by pipe-
line, road, and rail in the US is publicly available rom the Department o
ransportations Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Saety Administration
(PHMSA). Operators report any incident that crosses a certain saety thresh-
old, as well as injuries and atalities, to PHMSA.
US data on incident, injury, and atality rates or pipelines, road, and
rail or the 2005 to 2009 period (the latest data available) show that road andrail have higher rates o serious incidents, injuries, and atalities than pipelines,
even though more road and rail incidents go unreported. Americans are 75
percent more likely to get killed by lightning than to be killed in a pipeline
accident (Furchtgott-Roth, 2013).
Ater reviewing available data on the saety o dierent oil-transport
modes, we conclude that the evidence is clear: transporting oil by pipeline
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is sae and environmentally riendly. Furthermore, pipeline transportation
is saer than transportation by road, rail, or barge, as measured by incidents,
injuries, and atalities.
For North America to realize the massive economic benefts rom the
development o those oil sands, the transport conundrum must be solved. At
present, resistance to pipeline transport is sending oil to market by modes
o transport that pose higher risks o spills and personal injuries such as rail
and road transport.
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Introduction
Te Obama administrations decision to delay approval or the construction
o ransCanada Inc.s proposed Keystone XL pipeline was based, in part,
on concerns over the saety and reliability o oil pipelines. Te Keystone XL
pipeline is intended to transport oil rom Canada to US reners on the Gul
o Mexico. In announcing his decision, President Barack Obama called or a
ull assessment o the pipelines impact, especially the health and saety o
the American people. (White House, 2012). Additional proposed pipelines
in Canada are also being challenged on the grounds o environmental saety.
Most recently, the government o British Columbia rejected the proposed
Northern Gateway pipeline on environmental grounds (CBC News, 2013,
May 31). Proposals to double the existing rans Mountain pipeline (which
transports oil rom Alberta west to British Columbia) and to reverse the
ow o Enbridges Line 9 pipeline (which runs between Sarnia and West
Northover, Ontario) to also ace environmental challenges (Vanderklippe,
2012, Sept. 18).
In June the National Academy o Sciences released a study entitled
Eects o Diluted Bitumen on Crude Oil ransmission Pipelines that was
required as part o the Pipeline Saety, Regulatory Certainty and Jobs
Creation Act o 2011. Te report ound no evidence that diluted bitu
men, the type o crude oil that would ow through the proposed Keystone
XL pipeline, would contribute to pipeline ailures or corrosion (National
Research Council, 2013).At the end o June, Obama put orward another requirement with
regard to allowing the Keystone XL pipeline to advance, in a speech on cli
mate policy given at Georgetown University on June 25, 2013. Obama said
Allowing the Keystone pipeline to be built requires a nding that doing
so would be in our nations interest. And our national interest will be served
only i this project does not signicantly exacerbate the problem o carbon
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pollution. Te net eects o the pipelines impact on our climate will be abso
lutely critical to determining whether this project is allowed to go orward.
(White House, 2013)
Pipelines for oil and gas
Pipelines have been used to transport Canadian natural gas and oil, both
across Canada and into the United States, or over a century. Canadas
irst pipeline began in 1853, with the development o a 25 kilometre cast
iron pipeline that moved natural gas to roisRivires, QC, or street
lights (Natural Resources Canada, 2013). Canada is home to an estimated
825,000 kilometres o transmission, gathering, and distribution pipe
lines. he National Energy Board, which has regulated interprovincial
and international pipelines since 1959, is currently responsible or 71,000
kilometres o oil and natural gas pipelines (Natural Resources Canada,
2013). Our neighbor to the south, not surprisingly, has a much larger
pipeline network-4.2 million kilometres o interstate pipeline crisscross
America, carrying crude oil, petroleum products, and natural gas. In the
United States these pipelines are primarily regulated by the Department
o ransportation.
Based on the experience o both Canada and the United States, we can
examine the question o whether pipeline transport o oil is sae.
Rail transportation of oil
As the major alternative means o uel shipment, transport o crude oil by rail
has been increasing as limitations on pipeline capacity both in Canada and
the United States have become maniest.
Canada
Te Canadian Association o Pipeline Producers (CAPP) reports that trans
portation o crude oil production by rail in Canada is still quite modest, at
20,000 barrels per day (bbl/d) in 2011 (CAPP, n.d.).
United States
RBC Capital Markets estimates that currently 115,000 barrels o oil per day
are shipped by rail to the United States, with a trend toward 300,000 barrels
per day by 2015. RBC observes that there is no ofcial tracking data available
or crude oil shipments by rail (RBC, 2013). For perspective, the Keystone XL
pipeline, i approved, would carry 830,000 barrels per day.
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Te Association o American Railroads reports that between 2008 and
2011 the total share o oil and gas rail shipments grew dramatically, rom 2%
o all carloads to 11% (Parrish, 2011). In 2011 alone, rail capacity in the Bakken
area-stretching rom southern Alberta to the northern US Great Plains-
tripled to almost 300,000 barrels per day (Estathiuo, 2012, Jan. 23). Crude
oil shipments via rail have continued to expand at an accelerating rate; US
Class I railroads delivered 234,000 carloads o crude in 2012, compared to just
66,000 in 2011 and 9,500 in 2008 (Association o American Railroads, 2013).
United States and Canada
RBC suggests that the uture growth o oil by rail depends heavily on whether
or not large pipelines are built:
Continued growth in crude oil shipments by rail will absorb some o
the planned growth envisioned by select companies in Canadas oil
sands sector, but we expect some large projects are likely candidates
to be deerred with overall industry growth being constrained i the
830,000 bbl/d Keystone XL pipeline is not approved. In the event that
Keystone XL is declined by President Obama, our analysis suggests
that approximately 450,000 bbl/d, or onethird, o Canadas oil sands
growth could be temporarily deerred in the 201516 timerame, with
production remaining nearly 300,000 bbl/d (6%) lower than our base
outlook by 2020. As a base case, we expect crude oil shipments by rail
rom Canada to peak at just above 300,000 bbl/d by 2015 (approxi
mately 8% o estimated Western Canadian production at that time).
However, in the event that Keystone XL is declined, we would expect
crude oil shipments by rail rom Canada to increase to 425,000 bbl/d
by 2017 (approximately 16% o estimated Western Canadian produc
tion at that time. (RBC, 2013)
Te question o how to transport oil saely and reliably is not a transi
tory one linked only to Keystone XL or other pipeline controversies o the
day. Petroleum production in North America is now nearly 18 million bar
rels a day, and could climb to 27 million barrels a day by 2020 (US Energy
Inormation Administration, 2013). Tis oil will have to travel to where it is
needed. Whether it is produced in Canada, Alaska, North Dakota, or the Gulo Mexico, it will be used all over the continent.
The primacy of pipelines:
Pipelines are the primary mode o transportation or crude oil, petroleum
products, and natural gas in both Canada and the United States. In Canada,
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97% o natural gas and petroleum products are transported via pipelines
(Canadian Energy Pipeline Association, n.d.). In the United States, approxi
mately 70% o crude oil and petroleum products are shipped by pipeline on a
tonmile basis. US tanker and barge trafc accounts or 23% o oil shipments.
rucking accounts or 4% o shipments, and rail or the remaining 3%.
Pipeline safety
I saety and environmental damages in the transportation o oil and gas were
proportionate to the volume o shipments, one would expect the vast majority
o damages to occur on pipelines. But as we will discuss, a review o statistics
rom both Canadas National Energy Board as well as the US Department o
ransportation clearly shows that, in addition to enjoying a substantial cost
advantage, pipelines result in ewer spillage incidents and personal injuries
than road and rail. North Americans are more likely to be killed by a lightning
strike than in a pipeline accident.
The distinctive nature of pipeline transportation
Te superior saety and environmental perormance o pipelines is hardly
surprising: the genius o this technology is that the shipping container is
static while the commodity it is transporting moves. Moreover, that container
is typically buried, with about a metre o earth over the top o it. By contrast,
in every other means o oil transportation, both the container and the com
modity are moving over the surace, oten in close proximity to other large
containers moving in the opposite direction, and the empty container has
then to return to its point o origin to load another consignment.
Spill and safety data, Canada
Data on pipeline saety in Canada are
available rom the National Energy
Board. In Canada, any pipeline ailure
(rupture or leak) that results in a release
o more than 1.5 cubic metres o liquid,
or that results in a signicant eect on
the environment, must be reported tothe National Energy Board (National
Energy Board, 2011). able 1 shows the
reported liquid pipeline releases rom
2008 to 2012. As the table shows, while
Table 1: Liquid spill incidents by year and volume
Source: National Energy Board (2013).
Year Liquid spill incidents by year & volume
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
Jan-April 2013
Total
5 year average
Liquid release8m3
Liquid release>100m3
8
4
2
4
1
5
24
3.8
3
0
5
1
2
0
11
2.4
1
2
1
1
0
0
5
0.8
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spills do occur periodically, they are inrequent, and the majority release very
small quantities o oil to the environment.
In addition to leaks rom the body o the pipelines, spills also happen in
operational acilities when other pipeline components such as anges, valves,
and pumps malunction. able 2 shows pipeline operational leaks rom 2000
to 2009. As the National Energy Board points out, these leaks are distin
guished rom pipe body leaks in that they are oten contained within enced
pipeline acilities which may have a secondary containment mechanism. And
these leaks are small, most less than 1.5 cubic metres in volume (National
Energy Board, 2011). When one considers that Canada produces (and trans
ports) 3.2 million barrels o oil each year (509,000 cubic metres), the spill
Table 2: Pipeline operational leaks, 2000-2009
Source: National Energy Board (2013).
Year
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
Number of leaks
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volumes are remarkably small. Te 10year average or the requency o liquid
leaks, according to the National Energy Board is approximately three leaks per
1,000 km o pipeline (Canadian Association o Petroleum Producers, 2013).
Fatality rates or pipeline workers averaged 0.2 per year rom 2000 to
2009. Injuries to workers, contractors, and other employees averaged 3.8 per
200,000 workhours over the same time span (National Energy Board, 2011).
How does this compare with goods moved by trucks and trains? In
the summer 2012 newsletter, ransport Canada sums up the record or acci
dents involving trucks carrying dangerous materials (Williams et al., 2012).
Tere were 345 reportable accidents in Canada involving trucks hauling dan
gerous goods. wentyseven percent o the spills involved crude oil; 12.7%
involved diesel uel, uel oil, gas oil, or heating oil; 7.8% involved methanol;
5.8% involved hydrochloric acid; and the remaining 4.9% involved liqueed
petroleum gases. Te majority o these accidents occurred in Alberta (63%).
Most occurred during handling operations (62%) and most were considered
minor (94.5%).
According to the ransportation Saety Board o Canada (SB), in 2012
(ransportation Saety Board o Canada, 2013):
A total o 1,023 rail accidents under ederal jurisdiction were reported to
the SB in 2011, a 5% decrease rom the 2010 total o 1,076 and a 15% decrease
rom the 20062010 average o 1,198.
Railrelated atalities totaled 71 in 2011, compared to 81 in 2010 and
to the veyear average o 81.
In 2011, a total o 204 rail incidents were reported under the SB man
datory reporting requirements, up rom 160 in 2010 but comparable to the
veyear average o 205.
Dangerous goods leakers are rail incidents that result in the leakage
o dangerous goods. Tere were 63 dangerous goods leakers in 2012, a 24%
increase rom the previous year, but a 2% decrease rom the veyear aver
age o 64. In 2012, dangerous goods leaker incidents accounted or 31% o
reported rail incidents.
Spill and safety data, United States
Extensive data on pipeline saety in the United States is available rom
the US Department o ransportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials
Saety Administration (PHMSA) Ofce o Pipeline Saety (PHMSA, 2013a).Operators report to PHMSA any incident that crosses a certain saety thresh
old. Tese reports enable the public to compare the saety o pipelines to that
o road and rail.
A pipeline incident must be reported to PHMSA i any o the ollowing
occur: (1) Explosion or re not intentionally set by the operator; (2) Release
o ve gallons or more o a hazardous liquid (any petroleum or petroleum
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product) or carbon dioxide; (3) Fatality; (4) Personal injury necessitating hos
pitalization; or (5) Property damage, including cleanup costs, the value o
lost product, and the damage to the property o the operator or others, or
both, estimated to exceed $50,000 (Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Saety
Administration, 2011). able 3 shows how crude oil and petroleum are trans
ported in the United States.
One way to look at the saety record o petroleum, petroleum products,
and natural gas pipeline operators is to examine PHMSAs aggregated data
rom individual reports. able 4 shows a summary o all reported incidents
and damage between 1992 and 2011. Property damage costs are reported by
PHMSA in 2011, with lost product accounted or at benchmark prices at the
time o the incident.
Table 3: Crude oil and petroleum products transported in the United States by mode
(billions of ton-miles)
Crude oil, total
Pipelinesa
Water carriers
Motor carriersb
Railroads
2000
376
283.4
91
1.2
0.4
Rened peroleumproducts, total
Pipelinesa
Water carriers
Motor carriers
b
Railroads
Combined crudeand petroleumproducts, total
Pipelinesa
Water carriers
Motor carriersb
Railroads
497.3
293.9
153.4
30.119.9
873.3
577.3
244.4
31.3
20.3
2001
376.6
277
98.1
1.1
0.4
493.2
299.1
145.9
29.718.5
869.8
576.1
244
30.8
18.9
2002
384
286.6
95.7
1.2
0.5
480.6
299.6
131.9
29.419.7
864.6
586.2
227.6
30.6
20.2
2003
380.4
284.5
94.1
1.3
0.5
502.9
305.7
146
31.919.3
883.3
590.2
240.1
33.2
19.8
2004
374.1
283.7
88.7
1.2
0.5
528.4
315.9
158.2
33.221.1
902.5
599.6
246.9
34.4
21.6
2005
376
294
81.1
1.4
0.4
530
314
159
33.422.8
906
608
241
34.8
23.2
2006
366
300.5
63.8
1.4
0.4
489.4
280.9
149.3
33.825.4
855.4
581.3
213.1
35.2
25.8
2007
335.5
266.6
66.9
1.6
0.4
499.9
291.1
149.1
33.526.2
835.4
557.7
216
35.2
26.6
2008
372
306.3
63.2
1.7
0.7
485.9
299.4
130.8
33.422.3
857.9
605.7
194
35.1
23
2009
336
268.2
65.1
1.7
1
474.1
300.2
121.7
32.219.9
810
568.4
186.8
33.9
20.9
Sharec
80
19
1
0
63
26
74
70
23
4
3
a Beginning with 2006, pipeline data were taken from PHMSA F 7000-1-1. Previously, data were extracted from FERC Form No. 6,
which included data for federally-regulated pipelines. For 2005, data for federally regulated pipelines were estimated to include
about 90 percent of the total national ton-miles, so the pipeline statistics for that year were adjusted to include an additional 10
percent of ton-miles. From 1990 through 2004, the federally regulated estimate was 84 percent with a 16 percent addition forother pipeline ton-miles.
b The amount carried by motor carriers is estimated.
c Share shipped by mode in 2009 (percent)
Details may not add to totals due to rounding in the source publication.
Source: Association of Oil Pipe Lines, Shifts in Petroleum Transportation, 1990-2009: (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), tables 1, 2,
and 3, .
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o the untutored
eye, it can appear that pipe
lines are prone to signii
cant accidents. For instance,
there were 721 incidents in
2005, and 53 atalities in
1996, many caused by a pro
pane explosion in San Juan.
However, as the tables make
clear, saetyrelated incidents,
as measured by volume, are
actually minor. More import
ant, it is crucial to keep in
mind that there is no way, in
an advanced industrial econ
omy, to avoid shipment o
uels to provide power.
able 4 shows that the
number o incidents is rela
tively low. It has ranged rom
339 in 1999 to 721 in 2005.
Property damage has ranged
rom $53 million in 1995 to
$1.3 billion in 2010. Lost bar
rels o liquids spanned a low
o 32,258 barrels in 2009 to a
high o 123,419 the ollowing
year. Injuries ranged rom 36
in 2006 to 127 in 1996, and atalities ranged rom 7 in 2001 to 53 in 1996.
A major criterion or determining i an incident had to be reported to
PHMSA was signicantly revised in 2002. Between 1992 and 2002 a spill only
had to be reported i it was greater than 50 barrels o liquids or CO2 (ater
1991). However, beginning in 2002, the limit was dropped to ve gallons, with
an exception or maintenancerelated spills o ve barrels or less conned to
company sites (PHMSA, 2011). Hence, minor spills that were not reported
prior to 2002 were reported aterwards. From 1992 through 2001 an annual
average o 383 incident reports were led with PHMSA. Ten, rom 2002through 2011, companies led an annual average o 644 incident reports.
Gross barrels spilled do not take into account the number o barrels that
were recovered during cleanup. Te volume o liquids spilled that is ultimately
recovered varies widely rom year to year, and is likely heavily inuenced by
the nature o the spill. Between 1992 and 2011 about 40% o spilled liquids
were recovered (able 5). Over the entire 20year period a total o less than
Table 4: Pipeline incidents and related injuries and fatalities
(1992-2011)
Source: United States Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety
Administration Oce of Pipeline Safety, .
Year
1992
19931994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Totals
NumberProperty damage
as reported(in millions)
Net barrels ofliquids lost
389
445467
349
381
346
389
339
380
341
644
673
673
721
641
616
664
627
586
599
10,270
$70.50
$67.30$160.60
$53.40
$114.50
$79.60
$126.90
$130.10
$191.80
$63.10
$102.10
$139.10
$271.90
$1,246.70
$151.10
$154.90
$555.80
$178.00
$1,336.40
$336.30
$5,530.0
68,810
57,559114,002
53,113
100,949
103,129
60,791
104,487
56,953
77,456
77,953
50,889
69,003
46,246
53,905
68,941
69,815
32,258
123,419
108,663
1,498,341
Injuries
118
111120
64
127
77
81
108
81
61
49
71
60
48
36
53
59
66
109
65
1,564
Fatalities
15
1722
21
53
10
21
22
38
7
12
12
23
14
21
15
9
13
22
17
384
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1.5 million net barrels
were spilled.
Volumes that
are spilled are min
iscule when com
pared to the volumes
o petroleum that are
used in the United
States. o provide
some perspective,
US reineries pro
duce over 7 million
barrels o gasoline
every single day (US
Energy Inormation
A d m i n i s t r a t i o n ,
2013, May 20).
Considering the vast
network-175 ,000
miles o petroleum
pipeline and over 2
million miles o nat
ural gas pipelines
(about 321,000 o
transmission and
gathering lines, over
2 million o local dis
tribution main and
service lines)-incidents are exceedingly rare (Pipeline and Hazardous
Materials Saety Administration, n.d.).
o draw another comparison, according to the National Weather
Service, lightning caused an average o 35 reported deaths annually rom
2003 to 2012 (Ofce o Climate, Water, and Weather Services, 2012). From
1992 to 2011 atalities related to pipeline incidents were about 20 per year.
An individual had a 75% greater chance o getting killed by lightning as being
killed in a pipeline incident.
Data are also provided by PHMSA that make it possible to determinein what type o pipeline system a particular incident occurred. Tere are our
basic categories o pipeline systems, namely hazardous liquids, natural gas
gathering, natural gas transmission, and natural gas distribution. Natural gas
gathering pipelines bring raw natural gas rom the wellhead to the gas pro
cessing plant. Te natural gas transmission system is made up o pipelines
that bring processed (dry) gas rom the plants and carry it across the country
Table 5: Percent of liquids recovered from pipelin
incidents, all reported incidents (1992-2011)
Source: United States Department of Transportation Pipeline and
Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Oce of Pipeline Safety,
, and Manhattan Institute calculations.
Year
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Totals
Gross barrelsspilled
Net barrelsspilled
137,065
116,802164,387
110,237
160,316
195,549
149,500
167,230
108,652
98,348
97,255
81,308
89,311
138,094
137,693
94,981
102,076
54,964
174,921
137,932
2,516,625
68,810
57,559114,002
53,113
100,949
103,129
60,791
104,487
56,953
77,456
77,953
50,889
69,003
46,246
53,905
68,941
69,815
32,258
123,419
108,663
1,498,341
Percentagerecovered
50
51
31
52
37
47
59
38
48
21
20
37
23
67
61
27
32
41
29
21
40 (Avg.)
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to city gates or to large cus
tomers (e.g., heavy industry
or electrical power plants).
Te natural gas distribution
system is operated by local
distribution companies that
transport gas rom the city
gate to local households and
local businesses. able 6 dis
plays what percentage o inci
dents, atalities, injuries, and
property damage rom 1992
through 2011 occurred in
each pipeline system.
Although atalities and injuries are relatively low, the majority o those
that do occur have been associated with pipelines that are part o a natural gas
distribution system. Te US natural gas distribution pipeline network spans
over 2 million miles, and the ederal government does not regulate intrastate
pipelines (local distribution and production gathering lines), except or gath
ering lines that are located on ederal lands. Local distribution companies,
where both the vast majority o pipeline miles exist and accidents occur, are
regulated by states and municipalities.
he proportion o
property damage rom inci
dents originating at hazard
ous liquids pipelines is largely
the result o the inclusion o
lost product as part o the
damage, and the high cost
o cleaning up o oil spills.
From an operational stand
point, incidents associated
with natural gas transmission
and hazardous liquid systems
(large diameter interstate
pipelines) have resulted in 86 deaths and 387 injuries rom 1992 through
2011, as shown in able 7.How does this compare with road and rail? We have analyzed US
Department o ransportation data and produced incident and injury rates
or oil and gas pipelines, road, and rail or petroleum products in the period
2005 through 2009 (PHMSA, 2010). Because reporting o pipeline incidents
is only required or events involving injury or release over 5 gallons, we elim
inated road and rail incidents not meeting those criteria rom consideration.
Table 6: Percentage of incidents, fatalities, injuries, and
property damage by pipeline systems (1992-2011)
Natural gas gathering
Natural gas transmission
Natural gas distribution
Hazardous liquid
Incidents
2
18
26
54
Fatalities Injuries Property damage
Note: Not all columns sum to 100 due to rounding.
Source: United States Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials
Safety Administration Oce of Pipeline Safety, , and Manhattan Institute calculations.
0
12
78
11
1
14
75
11
7
28
17
49
Table 7: Incidents, fatalities, injuries, and
property damage by pipeline system (1992-2011)
Natural gas gathering
Natural gas transmission
Natural gas distribution
Hazardous liquid
Incidents
212
1845
2644
5569
Fatalities Injuries
Property damage
as reported
Source: United States Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials
Safety Administration Oce of Pipeline Safety, , and Manhattan Institute calculations.
0
45
298
41
12
216
1,165
171
$357,080,128
$1,534,724,575
$942,404,551
$2,695,828,774
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Even ater this narrowing o scope, road and rail have higher rates o serious
incidents and injuries than pipelines, even though more road and rail inci
dents go unreported.
able 8 compares incident rates or road, rail, oil and petroleum prod
ucts pipelines, and natural gas transmission. Road had the highest rate o
incidents, with 19.95 per billion ton miles. Tis was ollowed by rail, with
2.08 per billion ton miles. Natural gas transmission came next, with 0.89 per
Table 8: Comparative statistics for petroleum incident rates-
onshore transmission pipelines vs. road and railway (2005-2009)
Road*
Railway*
Hazardous liquid pipeline
Natural gas pipeline
34.8
23.9
584.1
338.5
*Only incidents involving and ton-mileage carrying those products carried by pipeline (petroleum
products, liquid natural gas, etc.) are counted for road and railway.
Sources: Ton-Mileage values are based on Tables 1-50 (for Natural Gas Pipeline) and 1-61 (all others)
of the Department of Transportation, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Bureau
of Transportation Statistics National Transportation Statistics,
. Incident and release volume data for Road and Railway were extracted
from the Oce of Hazardous Materials Safety Incident Reports Database Search, , HL Pipeline release volumes were extractedfrom the Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety Administration Hazardous Liquid Accident Data -
2002 to 2009 le, .
ModeAvg. billions ton-miles
shipment per yearAvg. incidents
Per Year
Incidents perbillion ton-miles
695.2
49.6
339.6
299.2
19.95
2.08
0.58
0.89
Table 9: Comparison of hazmat fatality statistics, operator personnel
and general public for road, rail, and pipeline (2005-2009)
Road
RailwayHazardous onshore only
Gas transmission onshore only
24
102
0
Source: Reproduced from US Department of Transportation, Pipeline, and Hazardous Materials Safety
Administration, Oce of Pipeline Safety, Building Safe Communities and its Application to Local Develop-
ment Decisions, October, 2010, Table 3: 26, .
2005
6
00
3
2006
10
04
2
2007
8
12
0
2008
3
14
0
2009
51
1212
5
Total
10.2
2.42.4
1.0
Averageper year
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Fraser Institute / www.fraserinstitute.org
billion ton miles. Oil pipelines were the saest, with 0.58 serious incidents
per billion ton miles.
With respect to pipeline systems, natural gas transmission lines had
the lowest average atality rate or operator personnel and the general public
between 2005 and 2009, with a rate o one person killed per year. Tis was
ollowed by oil and rail, each with an average o 2.4 people per year. Te rail
gure is skewed by a chlorine incident on January 6, 2005 in Graniteville,
South Carolina. Since chlorine is not transported by pipeline, some ques
tion the validity o drawing such a comparison, even though chlorine is a
hazardous material. Te highest atality rate is or transport via road, with
an average o 10.2 people killed each year in the US. Tis is not because
members o the public are killed due to road accidents with oil trucks. Only
1.4 members o the public, on average, were killed annually, but an average
o 8.8 operators died per year.
As shown in able 10, rates o injury requiring hospitalization and
o injury in general show a similar pattern. On average, annual injur
ies or 2005 through 2009 were lowest or hazardous liquid pipeline,
at 4 people with injuries requiring hospitalization per year. he rate
was higher or rai l, at 4.6 o such injuries per year, although or rail this
number was heavily biased by the 2005 observation. Road accidents
hospitalized 8.8 people per year, and natural gas pipelines hospitalized
45 people each year.
Te rates o injury per tonmile in able 10 are most pertinent, how
ever. On this measure, oil pipeline outperorms rail and road by a wide margin,causing just 0.00687 injuries requiring hospitalization per billion tonmiles.
Rail causes nearly 30 times that many injuries requiring hospitalization on a
pertonmile basis. Rail is also outperormed by natural gas pipelines on this
measure, causing over 1.4 times as many serious injuries per tonmile. Road is
the worst perormer on this measure, averaging one quarter as many serious
injuries per billion tonmiles. Tis is 37 times the oil pipeline rate.
Table 10: Injuries resulting from petroleum incidents-pipelines vs. road and railway
Road
Railway
Hazardous liquid pipeline
Natural gas pipeline
Sources: Road and Railway injuries were counted in the data extracted for Table 6. Pipeline injuries are
reproduced from
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 TotalAverageper year
Hospitalization
Total
Hospitalization
Total
Hospitalization
Hospitalization
9
38
20
24
2
45
10
37
2
2
2
32
10
38
1
4
10
37
6
17
0
0
2
53
9
41
0
1
4
58
44
171
23
31
20
225
0.2526
0.9816
0.1925
0.2594
0.00068
0.133
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Some claim that pipelines carrying Canadian oil sands crude, known
as diluted bitumen, have more internal corrosion, and are subject to more
incidents (Skinner and Sweeney, 2012). However, PHMSA data show that oil
releases rom corrosion are no more common in pipelines carrying Canadian
diluted bitumen than in other lines (National Academy o Sciences, 2012). Oil
sands crude has been transported in American pipelines or the past decade.
1 Data is rom orm PHMSA F 70001, slides 5152.
Table 11: Comparative statistics for petroleum product release rates:
onshore transmission pipelines vs. road and railway (2005-2009)
Road*
Railway*Hazardous liquid pipeline
Natural gas pipeline**
477,558
83,7456,592,366
*Only incidents involving and ton-mileage carrying those products carried by pipeline (petroleum
products, liquid natural gas, etc.) are counted for road and railway.
**No release volume data are available for gas pipeline in the PHMSA incident database.
Sources: Department of Transportation, Research, and Innovative Technology Administration,
Bureau of Transportation , Oce of Hazardous Materials Safety, , Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety
Administration .
ModeAvg. product release
per year (gallons)Release per
incident (gallons)Release per billionton-miles (gallons)
687
1,68819,412
13,707
3,50411,286
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Conclusion
Te evidence is clear: transporting oil by pipeline is sae and environmentally
riendly. Furthermore, pipeline transportation is saer than transportation
by road, rail, or barge, as measured by incidents, injuries, and atalities-
even though more road and rail incidents go unreported (Committee on
ransportation and Inrastructure, 2009, Sept. 9). (Reliable data on water
borne spills, which all under the jurisdiction o the Coast Guard, are not
readily available and so will not be included in this essay.)
Despite their saety, pipelines release more oil per spill than rail-but
less than road. As able 11 shows, typical release volumes on rail, particularly
o petroleum products, are relatively low at 3,504 gallons per billion ton
miles. While it outperorms road in terms o product release per tonmile,
pipeline transport o petroleum products still experienced product release
o 11,286 gallons per billion tonmiles. Tis gure does decrease by approxi
mately onethird i the high productrecovery rate or pipelines is considered,
however.
Rising oil and natural gas production in both the US and Canada is
outpacing the transportation capacity o our pipeline inrastructure. As one
o us (Green) discussed in a previous study, Canada is poised to dramatically
increase production o bitumen rom oil sand deposits in Western Canada
(Angevine and Green, 2013). For Canada to realize the massive economic
benets rom the development o those oil sands, the transport conundrum
must be solved. At present, resistance to pipeline transport is sending oil tomarket by modes o transport that pose higher risks o spills and personal
injuries such as rail and road transport.
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Fraser Institute / www.fraserinstitute.org
About the author
Diana Furchtgott-Roth
Diana Furchtgott-Roth is a Senior Fellow with the Manhattan Institute.
Kenneth P. Green
Kenneth P. Green is Senior Director, Natural Resource Policy Studies at the
Fraser Institute.
Acknowledgments
Research assistance or this report was provided by Andrew Gray, Claire Rogers,
and Joshua Sheppard. Te authors thank the anonymous reerees who made a
number o valuable comments and suggestions. O course, these reviewers are not
responsible or any o the errors or omissions that still remain in the manuscript.
Te views expressed in this study do not necessarily reect the views o the sup-
porters, trustees, or sta o the Fraser Institute.
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Date of issue
October2013
ISSN
ISSN1918-8323(onlineversion)
Citation
Furchtgott-Roth,Diana,andKennethP.Green(2013).Intermodal Safety
in the Transport of Oil. Studies in Energy ransportation. Fraser Institute.
.
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