Exxon’s tar sands pipeline spills twice in one month
Opponents of Keystone pipeline say spills are inevitable
One month after Exxon Mobile’s Pegasus pipeline ruptured in Mayflower, Arkansas, spilling thousands of gallons of crude oil in a residential neighborhood, the same pipeline spilled again in Ripley County, Missouri. The second Pegasus line spill – which was much smaller than the first -- occurred despite the fact that the operation was shut down after the first spill.
This spill reinforces the idea that the proposed Keystone XL pipeline is too risky, according to the All Risk, No Reward Coalition, which opposes the pipeline.
“Two tar sands spills in one month is devastating no matter where it happens, but it is particularly alarming that Keystone XL would run through one of our country’s largest sources of freshwater that provides irrigation and drinking water for millions of Americans,” said coalition Chair Randy Thompson. “The images from the Arkansas community were awful. Just imagine those same photos from the Ogallala Aquifer, and the financial damage that would cause. America cannot afford this kind of risk.”