Keystone Pipeline Reopens: Cause of Oil Spill Remains Unknown

By Gordon HopkinsThe remaining portions of the Keystone Pipeline have been restarted. TC Energy, the company formerly known as TransCanada Corporation, which owns and operates the pipeline, issued a statement on Thursday, December 29, 2022, “After completing repairs, inspections and testing we proceeded with a controlled restart of the Cushing Extension, safely returning the Keystone Pipeline to service today.”The Cushing Extension runs from Steele City, through Kansas, to Cushing, Oklahoma. While other sections of the pipeline had previously been put back into operation, the Cushing Extension includes that portion of the pipeline where a leak released an estimated 14,000 barrels, or 588,000 gallons, of crude oil into Mill Creek, near Washington, Kansas, on December 7, 2022.Cause Remains UnknownNot everyone is supportive of the restart, given that no cause has yet been given for the leak. Kansas state representative Rui Xu (D)Tweeted on December 24, 2022, “I am just a simple state legislator but maybe we don’t approve restarting the pipeline until we know the cause of the original spill?”Representative Xu has called for hearings on the matter.FJN reached out to TC Energy to ask how they can ensure the pipeline is safe to restart when the cause of the leak remains unknown. A representative for TC Energy responded, “The cause of the incident is still under investigation. We have removed and replaced the impacted section of pipe.”The representative added, “Nothing matters more to us than safety. We place the highest priority on the safety of our employees and the communities we serve as well as protecting our environment. PHMSA, who reviewed and approved our restart plan, was on-site for final restart activities. The Keystone System will operate under additional operational mitigation measures, including reduced pressures as also required and approved by PHMSA. We will utilize numerous layers of monitoring to ensure sustained safety of operations.”According to a Public Affairs Specialist from PHMSA, “The Corrective Action Order (CAO) we issued on December 8 requires the operator to conduct an independent third party Root Cause Failure Analysis (RCFA), which is required to be produced within 90 days of the issuance of the CAO. PHMSA has not yet received the RCFA from the operator.”CleanupCleanup of the spill is ongoing. TC Energy issued a statement on January 3, “Activities are ongoing to temporarily divert Mill Creek from a location upstream of the pipeline spill, to downstream of the containment dams. The diversion includes the installation of water pumps and an above-ground bypass line. The diversion will assist in the clean-up and reclamation of the creek.”As of Monday, January 2, 2023, TC Energy has reportedly recovered an estimated 11,939 barrels of oil, contained in 18,164 barrels of oil and water.

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