CSB to investigate Deepwater Horizon blowout

WASHINGTON - In response to a request from the House Committee on Energy and Commerce to conduct a full and thorough investigation into the causes of the Deepwater Horizon rig explosion, U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) Chairman John Bresland pledged to investigate the accidental chemical release that destroyed the rig - but also stressed that such an investigation may pose a challenge to the board's resources.
Committee Chairman Henry A. Waxman, D-Calif., and Subcommittee
Chairman Bart Stupak, D-Mich., sent a letter to CSB on June 8 requesting the investigation.
"We make this request because we believe CSB's past work on BP puts it in a unique position to address questions about BP's safety culture and practices," they wrote, noting in particular CSB's investigation into the 2005 fatal BP Texas City, Texas, refinery explosion and the 2006 BP pipeline leak in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska.
Waxman and Stupek asked CSB to investigate whether the circumstances leading up to the explosion reflect problems in BP's safety culture; whether cost-cutting and budgetary concerns played a role in BP's decisions about well design and testing; how BP, Transocean and other contractors assessed changes to process, technology, equipment, personnel, budget and training on the rig; if BP provided adequate oversight of contractors; and whether CSB can draw parallels between this oil rig explosion and the 2005 Texas City explosion.
In his response, Bresland stressed that CSB will make this work a priority and "apply all of our available resources to ensure the best possible investigation." He added that the process will include key investigators who were involved in the BP Texas City refinery explosion investigation.
He added, however, that this investigation must "be approached without any preconceptions and that all possible underlying factors and causes are thoroughly and objectively examined. Like other CSB investigations, the investigation should include an examination of key technical factors, the safety cultures involved, and the effectiveness of relevant laws, regulations, and industry standards."
Bresland also noted that CSB will work to avoid duplicating other investigations already planned or underway. He requested the committee's help in promoting cooperation with other investigations and in ensuring that CSB's investigation remains independent from potential criminal inquiries.
"The CSB plans to focus on events prior to and including the explosion on April 20; we believe that an examination of the response to the disaster and the impact of the ongoing massive oil spill is beyond the CSB's current resources and abilities," Bresland wrote.

U.S. Chemical Safety Board investigators rip gas purge practices

MIDDLETOWN, Conn. - Just prior to a Feb. 7 explosion that killed six workers and injured 27 at a Kleen Energy power plant in Middletown, a huge amount of natural gas was vented into a congested outdoor area between buildings.
About 400,000 cubic feet of gas - enough to fill a pro-basketball arena floor to ceiling with an explosive mixture - was vented amid vigorous construction activity at the new power plant, federal investigators reported at a news conference on Feb. 25. Several “potential ignition sources,” including welding, were present in the surrounding area, they said.
On the morning of the fatal accident, multiple pipe-cleaning efforts called “gas blows” sent natural gas surging through piping at 650 pounds per square inch and then outside through open pipe ends less than 20 feet off the ground. The investigators said the congested area “likely slowed dispersion of the gas,” which collected and was ignited by an undetermined ignition source.
The key problem was not ignition sources, which are widespread at construction sites, but the common practice of venting large amounts of gas from pipe cleaning into buildings or even outside. Insufficient attention was paid to this activity, which the investigators called “inherently unsafe.”
The safety issues raised by this accident are not limited to Connecticut (or) any particular company, facility, or individual,” Don Holmstrom, lead investigator for the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) told reporters. Thousands of workers are involved in building natural gas power plants nationwide. There are 84 gas-fired turbines in 35 different plants that are either being tested or are still under construction, according to the Edison Electric Institute. A study by the Interstate Gas Association of America Foundation (INGAA) estimates that as many as 62,000 miles of new pipelines could be built in the next 20 years.