Ecopol Project - Portland State University

Petroleum Pipelines Produce Profitable Problems

Although the alliteration may sound silly, the health and economic issues surrounding the transportation of this crude oil are very pertinent. Millions of miles of pipelines stretch across every continent, and their spills not only cause devastating health effects, but also increase our trade and budget deficits, further contributing to our economic downtown. The Association of Oil Pipe Lines state that pipelines are a vital part of our country’s infrastructure and serve as the safest and most economical ways to transport oil and petroleum products throughout the United States. America’s reliance on foreign petroleum oil, however, and this efficient way of delivering it, costs us Americans more than we realize. As oil tankers are the only alternatives to pipelines, they seemingly cut down on the use of gas and additional human labor costs. Now that our government has taken the dirty work underground, they can cost us our lives and jobs without us even realizing it. As The Tracy Press report that this damage occurs under our feet, the effects are less perceptible. Induced hydraulic fracturing is the process of forcing water mixed with chemicals under extreme pressure to create more cracks underground so that natural gas and petroleum have more pathways to be brought to the surface. Further chemicals are later applied to prevent cracks from closing. Thus our underground aquifers, wells, and drinking water supply all over Earth are contaminated.  By building more pipelines, we Americans are promised more jobs, but such pipelines as the Keystone Pipeline would just further increase our dependence upon foreign government contracts and predatory lending. More pipelines equal more problems.