Trans Alaska Pipeline Pump Station 01 Crude Oil Spill Earl - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Trans Alaska Pipeline Pump Station 01 Crude Oil Spill Earl Liverman, Region 10 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program  www.oscreadiness.org 

Trans Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) • Began service in 1977 • 800 miles in length; 48 inches in diameter • Transports average of 600,000 barrels of oil per day; 15% of Nation’s domestic oil production • Operated by Alaska Pipeline Service Company (APSC) and used by BP, ConocoPhillips, and ExxonMobil 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 1

15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 2

15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 3

15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 4

Deadhorse, Alaska 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 5

15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 6

Pump Station (PS01) 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 7

PS01 - Location of Leak 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 8

Incident Overview • North Slope oil flows into PS01 before flowing through TAPS to the Valdez Loading Facility. • On 8 January 2011, a leak was detected in the Booster Pump Building basement at PS01; TAPS was shut down within one hour of discovery of leak. • Unified command was established and consisted of EPA, BLM, Alaska Department of Environmental of Environmental Conservation, and APSC. • A Joint Information Center was also established consisting of EPA, ADEC, and APSC 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 9

Incident Overview (continued) • The leak was confined to PS01 – specifically the Booster Pump Building basement. • R10 EPA and START contractor personnel respond from Anchorage, Coeur d’Alene, Portland, and Seattle; arrived Fairbanks night of the incident and day after; FEOC staffed 24/7 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 10

Incident Overview (continued) • Under interim Re-Start Plan, TAPS flow resumed on 11 January 2011 • TAPS is shut down again on 15 January 2011 to install temporary bypass around the leaking segment of pipeline • TAPS resumes normal operations on 17 January 2011 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 11

Response Issues • Issue No. 1: Control and Contain the Discharge • Issue No. 2: Contamination Assessment • Issue No. 3 Temporary Pipeline Bypasses • Issue No. 4: Restart TAPS 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 12

Issue No. 1- Control and Contain the Discharge • Discharge occurred in a “dead head” to a booster pump in an inaccessible concrete vault which exacerbated corrosion potential • An 800-gallon containment vault was constructed to contain the oil • On-site vacuum trucks recovered about 317 barrels of oil 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 13

Issue No. 2 - Contamination Assessment • Frequent perimeter reconnaissance in vicinity of Booster Pump Building • Installation of three boreholes • Frequent inspection of pre- existing sumps and boreholes • No surface or subsurface evidence of oil contamination 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 14

Issue No. 3 – Temporary Pipeline Bypass • Immediate repair of leaking pipeline not possible • Constructed a 24-inch, 157-foot temporary aboveground bypass • Bypass pipeline was built in Fairbanks and shipped to North Slope in nine segments 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 15

15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 16

Issue No. 4 – Restart TAPS • Limited crude oil storage capacity on the North Slope; two bulk storage tanks at PS01 • APSC limited producers to 5% normal production rate because TAPS was shut down and limited storage capacity • TAPS low flow concerns 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 17

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Issue No. 4 – Restart TAPS (continued) • Avoid stuck “cleaning pigs” 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 19

2 nd Bypass Line • Section of pipe at Pump Station 8 where a pig was trapped and the bypass line through which oil is being diverted around it 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 20

Incident Challenges/Observations 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 21

EPA HQ/Region insatiable appetite for information 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 22

Leaning Forward 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 23

Worldwide Interest 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 24

Information Sharing 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 25

Preparedness 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 26

CWA 311(c) & (e) Unilateral Administrative Order for Removal Activities 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 27

Questions? 15 th Annual OSC Readiness Training Program   www.oscreadiness.org 28