Reply #63: For starters, how about using the best technology to check the lines? [View All]

[Doremus]

And then doing so routinely, as opposed to only when forced to?

From the article:

"BP, the world's second-largest oil company, discovered the extent of the corrosion with tests that were ordered by the federal government after a big oil spill last March at Prudhoe Bay, situated above the Arctic Circle, 650 miles north of Anchorage.

The oil company said it was surprised to find such severe corrosion, and had gone 14 years without using a device called a "pig" to clean out its lines because it did not believe it was necessary."


Routine maintenance (as in frequent, thorough checking/cleaning of lines using the most advanced technology) would have detected these weaknesses as they occurred, probably avoiding the shutdown that 14 years of neglect have caused.

When profits and next month's financial statement trump all, we can't expect any other outcome. The Davis-Besse nuclear plant here in Ohio came within months or weeks of a meltdown because they skimped on maintenance. If not for a whistleblower, who the utility company later vilified, the whole thing may have blown. I guess we should be grateful for that "minor" oil spill a few months ago or BP would still be blissfully avoiding their responsibilities.