Oil and Water: ETP and Sunoco’s History of Pipeline Spills

A new report by Greenpeace USA and Waterkeeper Alliance details a legacy of pipeline spills by Energy Transfer Partners, its subsidiaries including Sunoco, and joint ventures — which have amounted to 3.6 million gallons of hazardous liquid spilled over a 16-year period. These findings illustrate the grave threat pipelines pose to human health and water resources throughout the U.S.

Drilling fluid spilled into streams and wetlands from the Rover pipeline in Ohio, one of the many operations run by Energy Transfer Partners (ETP).

Read the full report here.

As millions of miles of pipelines wind their way across North America, oil spills, natural gas leaks, and other hazardous pipeline incidents have become a dangerous and unavoidable consequence of fossil fuel distribution. Pipelines now run through countless regions — near aquifers and waterways — and as spills occur, they’ve caused immense damage to the land and water resources that communities depend on.

Energy Transfer Partners (ETP), and its complex network of subsidiaries and joint ventures, owns one of the nation’s largest networks of natural gas, crude oil, and petroleum products pipelines. Analysis of public data collected from the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) shows that ETP and its subsidiaries including Sunoco and joint ventures, have caused 527 incidents from 2002 to the end of 2017, spilling 87,000 barrels (or 3.6 million gallons) of hazardous liquids, while producing an estimated $115 million in property damage.

A crucial takeaway from this analysis is that despite industry rhetoric to the contrary, there is no failsafe way to transport fossil fuels. Industry safety initiatives — along with understaffed regulatory agencies — have shown that fossil fuel companies are unable to eliminate the risk of spills, which remain an inescapable consequence of oil and gas activity. It is not a matter of if a pipeline will spill but when. What this underscores is the magnitude of problems communities face when they live in the path of a pipeline — and how important it is that we move towards a renewable energy future.

This report has received widespread support from environmental groups across the U.S., including The Standing Rock Community Development Corporation: “As an organization who is working to protect and empower Standing Rock people, we feel this information should be considered by all parties affected, especially those key stakeholders who have power to end the harmful and neglectful practices Energy Transfer Partners and Sunoco Corporations represent #MniWichoni”.

Other organizations who endorse this report include:

Below is a summary of our findings, and you can access the full report here.