I recently attended the annual Pipeline Safety Trust conference in New Orleans.

The conference brings pipeline industry operators, government leaders and the general public together to find solutions to make the pipeline industry safer. It was started in 1999 after the horrific Olympic Pipeline rupture that spewed 230,000 gallons of gasoline into a Bellingham, Washington creek. It ignited and killed 3 young men and destroyed that ecosystem.

I left the conference with mixed feelings. On one hand, the conference brings more awareness to pipeline safety but on the other, much work is still needed. Devastating pipeline accidents still occur each year. More pipeline company accountability is needed.

One common theme I heard while talking with other conference attendees was the Summit CO2 pipeline–their bad public relations and conduct and their lack of taking safety seriously. Even Energy Transfer Partners which operates the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) recently filed for intervention with the South Dakota Public Utilities commission largely on the grounds that Summit has refused to address crossing concerns. Right off the bat, Summit used bullying and intimidation tactics against landowners and county supervisors and now they are targeting opposition with cease and desist letters.

Summit is so bent on building this pipeline for all the $billions in taxpayer-funded government subsidies, to heck with everyone who stands in their way. It doesn’t take much to imagine how Summit will treat people when their pipeline ruptures!