Disasters

Buried Report Cites TransCanada’s ‘Inadequate’ Pipeline Inspections

"Just weeks after a TransCanada natural gas pipeline exploded and left thousands of residents without gas in sub-zero temperatures, a CBC News investigation uncovered a 2011 report, buried by federal regulators, that criticized the company “for ‘inadequate’ field inspections and ‘ineffective’ management.”"

Source: Climate Progress, 02/07/2014

"Water Safety Threatened By North Carolina Coal Ash Spill, Group Says"

"EDEN, N.C. – An environmental group Thursday challenged Duke Energy’s assurances that drinking water from the Dan River in North Carolina and Virginia remained safe despite a massive spill of toxic coal ash that released a deluge of murky gray sludge into the river Sunday."

Source: LA Times, 02/07/2014

CDC, EPA Respond to SEJ Complaints about Press Office Obstacles

After the SEJ and the Society of Professional Journalists complained January 20, 2014, about federal agency press office stonewalling in the face of the Charleston, WV, drinking water disaster, the agencies responded. Read the text of their replies here.

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WV Spill Revealed Striking Lack of Water Supply Regulations: Lawmakers

"WASHINGTON — Members of Congress and West Virginia officials say patchwork federal regulations are inadequate to protect the public from spills such as the one last month that contaminated drinking water for 300,000 people in the Charleston area."

Source: AP, 02/05/2014

"Undermanned And Limited, Chemical Safety Board Confronts A Crisis"

"The lead federal agency investigating the West Virginia chemical leak is one that most Americans have probably never heard of. The Chemical Safety Board is an independent body, modeled after the National Transportation Safety Board, which investigates plane crashes and the like. But critics say that the Chemical Safety Board is understaffed, underfunded and takes too long to finish its investigations, and that its non-binding recommendations are often ignored anyway."

Source: NPR, 02/04/2014
February 4, 2014

Senate EPW Hearing: “Examination of the Safety & Security of Drinking Water Supplies Following the Central WV Drinking Water Crisis"

The Senate Environment & Public Works committee's Subcommittee on Water and Wildlife is holding a hearing on the recent water disaster in West Virginia. The event will be webcast beginning at 10:00 a.m. ET, and should be archived for viewing afterwards. 

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