Government Agency Exposes Pipeline Safety Pitfalls

Washington, D.C. — The Government Accountability Office has uncovered dangerous pitfalls in the federal pipeline safety agency’s ability to adequately ensure safety of methane gas pipelines like MVP.

Russell Chisholm, co-director of the Protect Our Water, Heritage, Rights Coalition (POWHR) responded:

“We are aware that PHMSA’s authority is limited and relies too heavily on industry self-reporting and investigation. With an alarming 21 percent of incidents resulting from ‘natural and other outside force damage’ the MVP stands as a very dangerous test case of ‘high consequence’ assessment.”

The MVP route goes over some of the steepest slopes in the country, as well as landslide prone terrain and seismic zones. Numerous landslides and earthquakes have occurred in the blast zone, and community members are very concerned about their safety, especially given the ineffectiveness of agencies.

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