WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held a Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security Subcommittee hearing today titled Pipeline Safety: Assessing the San Bruno, California Explosion and Other Recent Accidents.

Witness List: 

Panel I

The Honorable Dianne Feinstein, U.S. Senator, California

Panel II

The Honorable Cynthia Quarterman, Administrator, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

The Honorable Christopher Hart, Vice Chairman, National Transportation Safety Board

Panel III

Mr. Jim Ruane, Mayor, San Bruno, California

Mr. Paul Clanon, Executive Director, California Public Utilities Commission

Mr. Christopher Johns, President, Pacific Gas and Electric Company

Mr. Rick Kessler, Vice President, the Pipeline Safety Trust

Key Quotations from Today’s Hearing: 

“Statistically, pipeline transportation is a relatively safe way to transport goods compared to other modes of transportation. But these statistics mean little to the families of those killed and injured by the San Bruno explosion. The explosion – and resulting fire – killed eight people, injured dozens more, and destroyed the homes of at least 37 families. The San Bruno explosion and the Michigan pipeline rupture that happened over the summer are stark reminders that more needs to be done on pipeline safety.”

Chairman John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV

“Our nation’s 2 million miles of pipelines are a vital part of America’s infrastructure, but when accidents like the San Bruno tragedy occur the consequences can be devastating. The legislation introduced today would strengthen the federal government's oversight of the nation's pipelines and require more inspections, steeper penalties for violations, and more advanced safety technology to prevent such tragedies.”

Senator Frank R. Lautenberg, Chairman, U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security

“This tragedy shows the heavy toll, in death and destruction, when high pressure natural gas pipelines fail. The risk is unacceptably high. So last week I joined with my colleague, Senator Barbara Boxer, to introduce the Strengthening Pipeline Safety and Enforcement Act of 2010. We have put forward our best ideas to improve inspection, address old pipes, and advance modern safety technology. We hope to improve these ideas as new information comes forward about the San Bruno tragedy. We look forward to working with the Senate Commerce Committee to move and improve this legislation expeditiously.”

The Honorable Dianne Feinstein, U.S. Senator, California 

“As recent pipeline failures have shown, the Department needs stronger authority in several key areas of its pipeline safety program. To ensure safety is not only our top priority but also the top priority of those we regulate, the Department submitted a legislative proposal to strengthen pipeline safety through new regulatory authority, increased penalties, and authorization levels that will strengthen our state partnerships and expand our inspection staff. In addition, the Department is working on significant rulemakings to increase regulatory oversight and improve guidance to operators as well as other efforts to increase coordination with partners and to support research and development.”

The Honorable Cynthia Quarterman, Administrator, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

“The accident in San Bruno is a tragic event, and the NTSB dedicates itself to determining the cause of the accident and proposing recommendations to prevent these types of accidents from happening in the future.”

The Honorable Christopher Hart, Vice Chairman, National Transportation Safety Board

“More than 400 first-responders gallantly battled the six-alarm inferno by dragging 3,000 feet of fire lines from an adjoining neighborhood where our water department was able to locate water. The heat was so intense it cracked the windshield of one fire truck, with the wall of fire stopping veteran responders in their tracks. As the fire spread rapidly into the adjacent Crestmoor Canyon, air strike teams sprayed fire retardant foam to prevent the fire from engulfing the canyon and the neighborhoods on the other side. Citizen-responders drove those with second-degree burns to nearby hospitals so that emergency crews could focus on the most severely burned and on preventing more lives from being lost.”

Mr. Jim Ruane, Mayor, San Bruno, California

“The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) views this event as a system accident (an accident that has had serious consequences and has caused major system disruption for natural gas transmission operators, legislators, regulators and the general public). Obviously, a system accident in an industry with a significantly safe operating record is cause for us taking a new look at the elements of the safety system and fixing those elements which failed. This is why the CPUC has convened an independent panel of experts to review all elements of the natural gas safety system that exists at the federal level and in California and make recommendations for improvements to that system.”

Mr. Paul Clanon, Executive Director, California Public Utilities Commission

“We owe it to the public to ensure that they can feel confident in the gas and electric service we provide. And we understand that in order to take action to prevent future tragedies, answers are needed as to what caused this horrible accident. We will continue to work cooperatively with those investigating the accident so that we, policymakers, and others have the information needed to improve pipeline safety.”

Mr. Christopher Johns, President, Pacific Gas and Electric Company

“Across the nation, neighborhoods are being built closer and closer to dangerous pipelines just like the recently impacted neighborhood in San Bruno was. Only if Congress gives PHMSA the resources it needs, along with a clear mandate, will the information local governments need to start considering these best land use practices near pipelines start to be instituted in time to prevent future San Brunos.”

Mr. Rick Kessler, Vice President, the Pipeline Safety Trust

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