
Less than two months after the Colonial Pipeline in Shelby County, Alabama, spilled 336,000 gallons of gasoline, the same pipeline exploded, killing one and injuring at least five. The pipeline is shut once again, threatening gasoline supplies in the East and sending prices soaring.
Watch here:
The explosion occurred about one mile from the site of the previous leak. A crew of nine were conducting maintenance on the pipeline when a track hoe, similar to an excavator, struck Line 1. Gasoline exploded, killing one worker at the scene. Five others were transported to UAB Hospital in Birmingham. Several others, who were not in critical condition, were expected to be sent to area hospitals and many will need decontamination.
Fires from the explosion continue to burn as of this morning. Two wildfires set off by the accident burned 37 acres, and forestry crews were reported to have established a three-mile perimeter.
Colonial Pipeline shut down its two main lines, which feed gasoline, diesel and jet fuel to markets in the East. Colonial supplies about one-third of the 3.2 million barrels per day of gasoline consumed on the East Coast.
Colonial pipeline explosion already leading to #wsnc gas shortage https://t.co/tUoiGZ6l9d— Katie Neal (@Katie Neal)1478001808.0
Gasoline prices immediately spiked as news spread, with futures prices up as much as 13 percent last night and more than 10 percent this morning. The Georgia chapter of the AAA said they expect to see fuel prices jump in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic.
#Pipeline Spill Triggers Supplier 'Red Alert' in #Alabama, #Georgia https://t.co/teTepoeaRM #ColonialPipeline @CahabaRiverkeep @riverkeeper— EcoWatch (@EcoWatch)1474038780.0
Thick smoke around the area of the fire and explosion led to aircraft flight restrictions, which is due to be lifted at 10 a.m. Eastern time this morning.
Flames and billows of dark smoke rise above treetops in rural Alabama following Colonial Pipeline explosion. #NoDAPL https://t.co/G3CZ75EEm3— Fusion (@Fusion)1477957678.0
The troubled pipeline company has had five spills in Alabama so far this year and 128 across its 5,500-mile system since 2010. This incident is the first known to have caused death or injury. By conservative estimates, Colonial has spilled at least 450,000 gallons of fuel into the environment since 2010.
As reported last month by EcoWatch, the number of significant pipeline incidents in the U.S. grew 26.8 percent from 2006 to 2015.
220 'Significant' Pipeline Spills Already This Year Exposes Troubling Safety Record https://t.co/pxhlC3pf06 @PriceofOil @350 @billmckibben— EcoWatch (@EcoWatch)1477418713.0
"There have been more than 220 pipeline disasters in the last year. Sadly, this one had a fatality and continues to burn many hours after it exploded," said Donna Lisenby of Waterkeeper Alliance.
"Many other pipeline spills contaminated waterways. This troubling track record of death and contamination indicates that pipeline operators are not safely maintaining existing pipelines. They are putting profits over people. It is time to recognize pipelines are not a safe way to transport oil and gas. For the sake of our communities and clean water, we need to stop building pipelines."
By Kate Whiting
From Greta Thunberg to Sir David Attenborough, the headline-grabbing climate change activists and environmentalists of today are predominantly white. But like many areas of society, those whose voices are heard most often are not necessarily representative of the whole.
1. Wangari Maathai
<p>In 2004, Professor Maathai made history as the <a href="https://www.nobelpeaceprize.org/Prize-winners/Prizewinner-documentation/Wangari-Maathai" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">first African woman to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize</a> for her dedication to sustainable development, democracy and peace. She started the <a href="http://www.greenbeltmovement.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Green Belt Movement</a>, a community-based tree planting initiative that aims to reduce poverty and encourage conservation, in 1977. More than 51 million trees have been planted helping build climate resilience and empower communities, especially women and girls. Her environmental work is celebrated every year on <a href="http://www.greenbeltmovement.org/node/955" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Wangari Maathai Day on 3 March</a>.</p>​2. Robert Bullard
<p>Known as the 'father of environmental justice,' Dr Bullard has <a href="https://www.unep.org/championsofearth/laureates/2020/robert-bullard" target="_blank">campaigned against harmful waste</a> being dumped in predominantly Black neighborhoods in the southern states of the U.S. since the 1970s. His first book, Dumping in Dixie, highlighted the link between systemic racism and environmental oppression, showing how the descendants of slaves were exposed to higher-than-average levels of pollutants. In 1994, his work led to the signing of the <a href="https://www.nrdc.org/experts/albert-huang/20th-anniversary-president-clintons-executive-order-12898-environmental-justice" target="_blank">Executive Order on Environmental Justice</a>, which the <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/27/executive-order-on-tackling-the-climate-crisis-at-home-and-abroad/" target="_blank">Biden administration is building on</a>.<br></p>Â
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="7983f54726debdd824f97f9ad3bdbb87"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/T_VjSGk8s18?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>Pollution has a race problem. Elizabethwarren.com
3. John Francis
<p>Helping the clean-up operation after an oil spill in San Francisco Bay in January 1971 inspired Francis to <a href="https://planetwalk.org/about-john/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">stop taking motorized transport</a>. Instead, for 22 years, he walked everywhere. He also took a vow of silence that lasted 17 years, so he could listen to others. He has walked the width of the U.S. and sailed and walked through South America, earning the nickname "Planetwalker," and raising awareness of how interconnected people are with the environment.</p>Â
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="09b968e0e9964e31406954dcea45981d"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vgQjL23_FoU?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>4. Dr. Warren Washington
<p>A meteorology and climate pioneer, Dr. Washington was one of the first people to develop atmospheric computer models in the 1960s, which have helped scientists understand climate change. These models now also incorporate the oceans and sea ice, surface water and vegetation. In 2007, the <a href="https://www.cgd.ucar.edu/pcm/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Parallel Climate Model (PCM)</a> and <a href="https://www.cesm.ucar.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Community Earth System Model (CESM)</a>, earned Dr. Washington and his colleagues the <a href="https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/2007/summary/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nobel Peace Prize</a>, as part of the <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change</a>.</p>Â
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="09fbf6dc37f275f438a0d53ec0fe1874"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bvJ4jTy2mTk?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>5. Angelou Ezeilo
<p>Huge trees and hikes to pick berries during her childhood in upstate New York inspired Ezeilo to become an environmentalist and set up the <a href="https://gyfoundation.org/staff/Angelou-Ezeilo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Greening Youth Foundation</a>, to educate future generations about the importance of preservation. Through its schools program and Youth Conservation Corps, the social enterprise provides access to nature to disadvantaged children and young people in the U.S. and West Africa. In 2019, Ezeilo published her book <em>Engage, Connect, Protect: Empowering Diverse Youth as Environmental Leaders</em>, co-written by her Pulitzer Prize-winning brother Nick Chiles.</p>Â
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