Impacts of a Petroleum Pipeline Failure in the Alberta Foothills

On July 10, 2002, Cam Stevens notified Penn West Petroleum that a pipeline leak may have been responsible for a large number of dead amphibians observed in a beaver-obstructed stream that he was studying in the boreal foothills eco-region near Lodgepole, AB. The company immediately pressure tested nearby pipelines to discover that a freshwater line containing industrial bactericide and corrosion inhibitors had failed. This unfortunate event provided a unique opportunity to document the environmental effects of a typical pipeline failure in Alberta. As part of his PhD research project, Cam was using field enclosures to assess the role of pond conditions in the growth and survival of larval wood frogs on four beaver ponds. Coincidentally, one was the spill pond downstream of the pipeline failure. The other three sites were similar reference ponds not affected by the chemical spill. Each pond had six enclosures constructed of wood frames with nylon window screen on all sides and placed in the shallow margins of ponds. At the start of the experiment, 20 recently hatched larvae were added to each enclosure. On day 33 (July 10, 2002), none of the larvae had survived in the spill pond while in the three reference ponds, the mean survival rate in the enclosures was 91%. Three hundred dead larvae were also found outside the enclosures, but within the spill pond, between June 19 and July 10.

A dead larval Wood Frog

The field observations clearly suggest that corrosion inhibitors and industrial bactericides in pipelines pose a threat to amphibians and pond ecosystems. Given this evidence, the high rate of failures from an increasingly extensive pipeline network represents a potentially large environmental impact in Alberta. Indeed, the EUB agrees that pipeline failures due to internal corrosion are a large source of liquid releases that pollute the environment. The mechanisms by which these chemicals affect freshwater and terrestrial environments in Alberta are unclear, however. Two potentially toxic compounds in corrosion inhibitors and industrial bactericides are methanol and alkyl-dimethyl ammonium chloride. The latter ingredient belongs to a class of chemicals called quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs) that are registered pesticides and not readily biodegradable.

Recommendations

• Collaborative research between industry and university on the toxicology of pipeline maintenance chemicals
• The oil and gas sector implement new pipeline technology that reduces corrosion, such as the use of internally-coated steel.

Links

• ERSC Environmental News Pipeline Failure Article, written by Cam Stevens
• Cam Steven's Home Page
• Pembina Institute
• The Energy and Utilities Board of Alberta

Acknowledgments

The following organizations provided financial support for the study: Alberta Sport, Recreation, Parks, and Wildlife Foundation (ABSRPWF), Mountain Equipment Co-op (MEC), Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada, and Weyerhaeuser Canada, Ltd. Also thanks to the field staff that included Kelly Field, Liam Dunn, and Rayna. This study benefited greatly from the logistical support provided by Drayton Valley division of Weyerhaeuser Canada Ltd., and Randall Lynch with Camp Brazeau, AB.

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