"Half of Olympics Pool" Oil Leaked from Keystone Pipeline in North Dakota

(Photo : Reuters)
Trump approves the controversial Keystone XL project that former President Obama and a federal court in Montana rejected.

After being criticized previously for the same reason, an oil leakage was discovered again from Keystone 1 Pipeline in North Dakota, TC Energy company said in a statement.

A drop in pressure, the north of Edinburg was detected on Tuesday leading to immediate shutdown of the affected pipeline, the company said. The cause of leakage is still unknown and is still being investigated by an independent party, they added.

The Impact

"Around 9,120 barrels of oil – or around 383,040 gallons (1,449.96 cubic meters) – had leaked," the North Dakota Department of Environment Quality (NDDEQ) said in a news release. This amount is equivalent to the amount of oil needed to cover half of an Olympic-sized swimming pool, making it among the largest leakage in the state, said Karl Rockerman, the director of Water Quality Division of NDDEQ.

Despite the leakage, they announced that the public health is not at stake since there is no community or a water source of used for drinking, in the area, Rockerman added.

TC Energy also claimed that there are no reported injuries nor affected wildlife. They will also continue monitoring the air and water quality in the area to ensure the safety of the public, which they claimed as their "top priority."

When the pipeline will continue its operation is still unknown as the Canadian-based company did not disclose it yet. On Thursday, however, they announced an activity that will make them focus on cleanup and repairing for the meantime.

The Protest

An environmental justice non-profit group, the Indigenous Environmental Network, criticized the company for not doing enough to guarantee the durability of the pipeline.

It was for the same reason that they are against the Keystone XL project as it is never supposed to be about "if a pipeline breaks" but "when will a pipeline break,'' said Joye Braun, the front line community organizer of the nonprofit group.

This is not the first time the pipeline system leaked oil. In 2017, a protest that lasts for more than a month took place in South Dakota after 210,000 gallons of leaked oil was exposed. The situation was so bad that some oil surfaced above ground, said Brian Walsh, a spokesman for the state's Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

The TC Energy also released aerial footage on its official Twitter account.

Image of Amherst incident taken earlier today by aerial patrol as part of our initial response. For more updates, visit https://t.co/8yWI1Oq2EM pic.twitter.com/uRNtYUdVjL — TC Energy (@TCEnergy) November 16, 2017

At least 10,000 people participated in the rally.

In November 2016, a violent protest also took place as the protesters tried to stop the construction of the pipelines since it might affect the drinkable water source. Then, an explosion occurred which resulted in 12 injuries, with one woman almost lost her limbs. The protesters claimed that grenades were thrown to them, while the police said the protesters are throwing improvised explosives.

The 2,600-mile Keystone Pipeline system stretches from Alberta, Canada, to Manitoba on the east while to Texas on the south.

Keystone 1 is the phase one of the pipeline system, which started from Alberta to refineries in Illinois and Oklahoma. North Dakota and South Dakota are among the states the system as run through. It began its operation in 2011.

Then, another extension was proposed which will extend to Steele City, Nebraska. It is known as Keystone XL. The project was initially blocked by a federal court in Montana, but the U.S. President Donald Trump signed new permission in March to continue its construction.

The Keystone XL was also previously rejected by former U.S. President Barack Obama due to environmental concerns.