Varanus Island gas explosion report slams Apache

US oil-and-gas giant Apache Energy has failed to block a scathing review of the Varanus Island gas explosion, which cut 30 per cent of Western Australia’s supply and cost the economy an estimated $3 billion. Apache claimed the explosion at its plant off WA’s North-West coast in June 2008 was “unforseen and unforeseeable”. But a [...]

Debate Intensifies Over Oil Produced From Canada’s Oil Sands

As the U.S. continues to increasingly rely on Canada as its most important foreign oil source, environmentalists and scientists are concerned about the repercussions of the partnership. The U.S. has worked to fundamentally alter domestic oil and natural gas drilling over the past decade, as lawmakers work to achieve the long sought after goal of [...]

U.S. Navy Settles Underground Storage Tank Violations at Hampton Roads Facility

The U.S. Navy has agreed to pay a $5,855 penalty to settle alleged underground storage tank (UST) violations at its Building NH94, located at 7918 Blandy St., Norfolk, Va., the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today. There are three 25,000-gallon underground storage tanks at this facility containing diesel fuel. Each UST is required to be [...]

Pipeline that leaked – safe to reopen

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Energy (DOE) has asked the Court of Appeals (CA) to allow the reopening of the 117-kilometer Batangas-to-Manila white oil pipeline being operated by the Lopez-owned First Philippine Industrial Corp. (FPIC) after the leak test it conducted in December indicated no more leaks in the pipeline. In a five-page manifestation [...]

The World Corrosion Organization has designated April 24, 2012 as Corrosion Awareness Day

Corrosion Awareness Day is to highlight the estimated $2.2 trillion annual cost of corrosion worldwide (3 to 4% of GDP of industrialized countries) reflecting in part many decision-makers in industry and government not fully understanding the consequences of corrosion and how critical it is to control it. However, the potential to reduce that cost by [...]

2 of New Jersey’s elected officials call for gas pipeline guidelines to better protect urban areas

Mayor Jerramiah T. Healy and Rep. Albio Sires (D-13th) are calling on the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) to better protect highly-populated urban areas from the explosive threat of natural gas pipelines. Arguing that PHMSA fails to safeguard densely-packed large urban populations, the officials are specifically demanding that PHMSA [...]

PHMSA Proposes New Rule to Increase Enforcement of Pipeline Excavation Programs

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) has proposed new procedures geared to strengthen excavation damage prevention programs and increase penalties for violators. Excavation damage continues to be a leading cause of all U.S. pipeline failures and is the single greatest threat to the safety, reliability, and integrity of the [...]

New Jersey Natural Gas wants to spend $204M on new pipes

New Jersey Natural Gas wants to replace about 343 miles of distribution pipes, old mains that are in danger of corrosion and leaks. If approved by state regulators, the proposed five-year, $204 million project will occur throughout Monmouth, Ocean and Morris counties. The Wall-based utility sent the proposal to the state Board of Public Utilities [...]

Pittsburgh-area site is chosen for major refinery

Shell Oil Co. has chosen a site near Pittsburgh for a major, multi-billion-dollar petrochemical refinery that could create thousands of construction jobs and provide a huge economic boost to the region. Dan Carlson, Shell’s General Manager of New Business Development, said Thursday that the company signed a land option agreement with Horsehead Corp. to evaluate [...]

How seawater could corrode nuclear fuel

Japan used seawater to cool nuclear fuel at the stricken Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear plant after the tsunami in March 2011 — and that was probably the best action to take at the time, says Professor Alexandra Navrotsky of the University of California, Davis. But Navrotsky and others have since discovered a new way in which seawater [...]