Drift River Tank Farm Update – Status is Uncertain.
Two more large eruptions of Mt. Redoubt volcano today, have caused a mudflow in Drift River, the river that flows right next to the Chevron tank farm at the base of the volcano. Flows of mud, ice and volcanic debris that accompany eruptions of this type are called “lahars,” and are capable of inflicting massive damage to structures in their wake.
The Drift River oil terminal was evacuated Monday after Redoubt’s first series of eruptions, but crews have made at least two visits to the site since then. One was on hand this morning during a lull in eruptions, according to Cook Inlet Pipeline Co. spokeswoman Lana Johnson. As soon as the volcano observatory upgraded its aviation advisory from orange to red, “they promptly left,” she said in an e-mail message.
The eruption that occurred around 9:30 this morning resulted in an ash cloud that reached 65,000 feet into the atmosphere, higher than any ash cloud so far. The Alaska Volcano Observatory research hut located 7 miles north of the river has experienced ash falls of more than two inches.
All Alaskan Airlines flights into and out of Anchorage have been cancelled.
This is from the latest update on the Chevron site:
Cook Inlet Pipeline Company also intends to conduct a full inspection of the protective dike and containment system as soon as it is practical to ensure the structural integrity of the system.
We understand how important our role is in keeping the oil flowing for the benefit of the residents of Southcentral Alaska. Our goal is to safely resume operations as quickly as possible.
If only their goal would have been to protect the waters of Cook Inlet. Right now, we’re told that in order to drain the tanks, the special equipment would need to be flown in, and that’s just too dangerous right now.
So why was this special equipment not flown in a month ago, when the volcano began to show signs that eruptions were imminent? Because that is neither the priority of Chevron, nor the governor.
The governor’s priority is the governor.
And my guess is that they may not be able to do a fly-over for a while, given the eruptions. What a bunch of knuckleheads!
OT OT Went looking for that post…and shocked when I got back….before reading new articles…here’s what I found. It was right under my nose all along!! By the architect…of sports arena.
http://delong.typepad.com/egregious_moderation/2008/10/wayne-barrett-s.html
Okay…back to the article….
InJuneau, I’ve been trying to chase you down. SMR posted on thread before last and I reposted on the last. Did you see it?
Now, I’m going to copy and paste 2 of them and tell SMR to get over here to the new thread.
—————
GA Peach a/k/a Lance the Boil aka Crust ScrambleNo Gravatar (13:54:11) :
SMR, I’m copying your post from the last thread, cause I want Injuneau to read it.
——————
SMRNo Gravatar (13:43:46) :
@InJuneau –
OMFG. Suckiest rethuglican lawyer ever. Baaaaaaad political move. It is utterly impossible to spin him as ethical or non-partisan. Completely impossible to believe that justice will be served with him as AG.
He was representing her in something recently. Doesn’t that automatically disqualify him? How can he serve AK before her? Wasn’t that why Talis was run out of his job?
and the next
SMRNo Gravatar (13:57:42) :
I am certain that I read that he represented Palin in some capacity very very recently. Wouldn’t that disqualify him from this post? How can he put the interests of AK first if he’s already in the Gov’s pocket? Didn’t the last one leave for that very reason?
I can’t keep up with the threads tonight…they are coming thick and fast…glad they are not plain and simple.
And I was totally wrong…tens of thousands…I told you I had problems with long term memory…but that’s a lot more than any $5,000 (trying to make light of my error)!
Time to send more emails – PO, Salazar, Greenpeace, Sierra, FOE, Homeland Security, Coast Guard ……
Redoubt has been kind, to give so many warnings. We’re just plain lucky.
Yeah, why wasn’t that equipment put in place in January?
And SP’s idiotic press release – the state has done all it can to prepare citizens, blah blah blah. Doesn’t she realize the only thing that should be done right now is to keep that oil contained?
The old horse and barn door thing.
OT I went to ADN to see what they had on the status of the tank farm (they don’t know) and saw “(swwnbn) fashion style as governor”. For a big LOL go there and look at photo #13 (the Mat-Su picnic if it has not been removed) People are asleep at the wheel. Isn’t that a photo-shopped pic? Are they just randomly pulling photos off of the internet? Hilarious break from the fear that is the Tank Farm.
“Chevron………..intends to conduct a full inspection of the protective dike and containment system as soon as it is practical to ensure the structural integrity of the system.”
====
it WAS practical over the past many years…….not really, if you figure that collecting bonuses for not doing this type of quality management may have been a higher priority…..would think it would be a top priority, to ensure the integrety and safety of the system.
as one of the regular posters often says, eeeeeewwwwwwww !!
be entertained
@GA Peach–hey. we’re just chasing each other around all the active threads. I’ve responded, as has SMR, on both the previous threads. Not to worry (and thanks!).
OT went looking for the Where’s Sarah pin at the phone booth at 4th & E…..just got my hands grimy for no reward….. wah!
Awww. There’s still the one in the men’s room at the Hilton!
AKM
Thanks for the update AKM…oh, I have a bad feeling about this. Chevron failed to protect the tank farm; as soon as activity became evident…the tanks should have been drained.
I cannot understand the thinking of putting a tank farm at the base of a volcano. Just don’t understand the logic!!
Please stay safe!!!
And three days after Mt Redoubt blew, not a peep out of the Gov. WTF?!
@Dr. Patois (14:04:06) :
That IS the photo that got pulled off the gov’s webpage originally and was photoshopped by someone to make it look like Piper was flipping off the other kid and then sent out on the ‘tubes. If you look at the one on the ADN site, you can tell it’s the original, as she is holding up two fingers.
I’d have to look around to find out what lead to the locating of the tank farm at that location originally, but I’m just continually struck by how unwise a choice it was and continues to be…
This came from todays,
Futures and Commodity Market News
Either the state or federal government could order the tanks to be drained if an oil spill were imminent, but the Coast Guard’s Losciuto said that’s unlikely for now. Draining the tanks below their normal working level would require a long startup period when operations resumed, potentially risking some Cook Inlet production. Unless the dike was weakened, there would be no reason to expect it to fail, he said.
“We’re comfortable leaving the limited amount of product in those tanks,” Losciuto said. “It’s definitely better than having the damage and loss of the facility if the tanks were moved off their foundations.”
Its good to know that they designed the tank farm for a 100 year flood after it was flooded out once already by a volcanic eruption. Don’t worry every one the tank farm is insured by AIG.
Just praying you all are safe
oh why monitor volcanos???? useless earmark????
yeah, I’m thinking we need to defund hurricane monitoring too; it’s just not that useful, you know…
AIG…I should have known,,,ROFL
I remember sitting here in my PJ’s back in Jan discussing the emergency in the villages, when Mt. Redoubt first started to rumble. That night I asked, “How do you drain those tanks?” How soon can they be drained?” How do we get the Gino and the oil guys moving in that direction. If a Mt about to blow doesn’t move them nothing will, so we will have to get busy and help the villages. It looks like the Mudflats might have to go move that oil before the Mt does, it’s for sure the oil guys and the Gino are just going to wait for the Rapture, the End of Days, or the Mt to blow, which ever comes first. It’s no skin off their nose, Chevron will just raise the oil prices and Gino will just go right on saying drill baby drill, I’m looking forward to 2012, ya betcha.
Thanks, InJuneau…I am curious as to why the tank farm was put there. I joked before because of cheap taxes…
I’ll have to poke around on the ‘tubes later and see if I can find anything. It does seem crazy, doesn’t it?
OT, but here’s another link about WAR: http://community.adn.com/adn/node/139744
Looks like Mount Redoubt isn’t the only thing erupting – Palin not the only one to ‘announce WAR’.
JUNEAU ? Legislative leaders blasted Gov. Sarah Palin this afternoon for issuing an “absolutely false” press release & denying lawmakers direct access to discuss the federal stimulus & the state’s budget.
Her legislative liaison, Gerry Gallagher, asked Senate Pres. Stevensif lawmakers would be willing to meet with staff instead.
There is really limited value in our meeting with the staff, when in fact we need to meet with the governor,” Stevens said.
Palin planned a 1:30 p.m. press conference in Anchorage to announce Wayne Anthony Ross? appointment as Alaska?s new attorney general.
She sent out a press release during a leadership press conference charging that lawmakers had called off a meeting with her to hold a press conference.
That is absolutely false, absolutely false,” Stevens said emphatically. “I am sorry that the governor has put this out. To say that we cancelled the meeting to have a press conference is absolutely not true.
“Cook Inlet Pipeline Company also intends to conduct a full inspection of the protective dike and containment system as soon as it is practical to ensure the structural integrity of the system.
We understand how important our role is in keeping the oil flowing for the benefit of the residents of Southcentral Alaska. Our goal is to safely resume operations as quickly as possible.”
Reading the above I, as a not so informed person on the issue, think that Cook Inlet Pipeline Company is a separate entity from Chevron and thus holds part of the responsibility for keeping the oil contained. I note they only “intend” to inspect which gives them an out for not doing so for “practical” reasons. I agree with mwThatOne that they should have been inspecting all along.
The second paragraph really irritates me because I think they are trying to shift responsibility by implying the situation exists only because of the “hungry” residents of Southeast Alaska. And finally, “Our goal is to safely resume”, which tells me their only real concern is their own derrieres not the safety of Cook Inlet.
So I think who is this Cook Inlet Pipeline Company? The rest of you probably already knew…
“The Cook Inlet pipeline and terminal assets are owned by Cook Inlet Pipeline Company, a Delaware corporation; current owners are Union Oil Company of California, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Chevron Corporation (50%), Pacific Energy Resources (50%). Cook Inlet Pipeline Company is authorized per the Regulatory Commission of Alaska to operate the assets under its filed tariff conditions. Chevron Pipe Line Company operates the facilities.”
I am praying for Cook Inlet.
And, BTW, that most recent ADN link from me has some very informative articles about him.
UK LadyNo Gravatar (14:40:08) :
Got link?
The Gov. is a diddler and a slacker.Besides the obvious of “Do the Right Thing”……..if all hell breaks loose , it won’t look good on the resume for 2012. What a loser.
UK Lady – Sarah lied ?!?! I’m floored………
GA Peach and austintx
This seems to be a breaking story, it is from several people in the comments section on the WAR story in ADN, but not till some 6 ish pages in. A commenter called jrkitty is scathing and she has several informed posts.
::So why was this special equipment not flown in a month ago, when the volcano began to show signs that eruptions were imminent? Because that is neither the priority of Chevron, nor the governor::
Hold on, there. Is that Bobby Jindal I hear saying, with great self-satisfaction, “Why have volcano detection when they won’t do the hard work to prepare when they know they’re going to have an eruption? I rest my case.” I just know that’s going to be his defense.
newsminer dot com/news/2009/mar/26/legislators-palin-feud-over-canceled-meeting/
Apphouse50No Gravatar (14:55:16) :
::So why was this special equipment not flown in a month ago, when the volcano began to show signs that eruptions were imminent? Because that is neither the priority of Chevron, nor the governor::
Hold on, there. Is that Bobby Jindal I hear saying, with great self-satisfaction, “Why have volcano detection when they won’t do the hard work to prepare when they know they’re going to have an eruption? I rest my case.” I just know that’s going to be his defense.
———
LOL Can’t wait to hear GINO’s reply.
OK got a link
http://www.newsminer.com/news/2009/mar/26/legislators-palin-feud-over-canceled-meeting/
Watch it “InJuneau (14:27:07) : ” I’am in Florida on the West coast it is almost time to monitor the hurricanes!
Unless the dike was weakened, there would be no reason to expect it to fail, he said.
This is just brilliant! So if the dike is just completely flooded over its top with lava, boulders, mud, ice burgs, chunks of the mountain, and doesn’t fail, there is no reason to worry about the Tank farm? Someone is “Magical Thinking”.
UK Lady (14:40:08) You’re right!!
“That is absolutely false, absolutely false,” Stevens said…”
Wow…who would have thought?
New thread.
Palin picks Wayne Anthony Ross as new AG.
I need aspirin.
Sorry for being off topic AKM This is the link where Ross represented Gino….it is almost to the bottom under no straight answers…….http://www.adn.com/sarah-palin/story/510276.html
here is the drift with alot being snipped:
The Daily News and KTUU-Channel 2 sued in February to force open the evidence. On April 6, while those lawsuits were pending, Palin’s lawyer, Wayne Anthony Ross, gave Ritchie an ultimatum: move to a public resolution of the ethics case in 10 days or Palin would call a press conference “for the purpose of setting forth, publicly, what she knows about this entire matter and why she chose to resign from the Commission.”
UK Lady – thanks for the link……..read it……..Sarah is about a lame-ass chicken-s^*t.
dang you will have to copy and paste, sorry
and here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=138×2902………another snippet; The Governor stresses that her taxes are a personal matter, not the business of the IRS, and that further inquiries about them should be directed to her tax attorney, Wayne Anthony Ross, or to the officers of the Alaska Independence Party.
OMG. Wayne Anthony Ross is one of the reasons I wasn’t sad to leave Alaska in 1990. The Exxon-Valdez disaster was another. (And there were also many reasons I was sorry to leave, though.)
From the ADN article, which quotes a long article from 1989:
“Wayne Anthony Ross, whose initials W.A.R. mark the license of his huge, red, fourwheeldrive Chevy Suburban, is increasingly one of the country’s most outspoken defenders of the right of citizens to keep and bear arms. He’s been on the NRA’s national board of directors for nearly 10 years. As the progun group’s second vice president, he’s directly in line for the NRA presidency.
* * *
From his Third Avenue office overlooking the Port of Anchorage, Wayne Ross specializes in those messy, litigious cases involving child custody and divorce. He especially likes cases against bureaucrats.
Yet Ross also fights for the rights of other favored constituencies. He’s represented antiabortion groups against those whom he readily labels “baby killers.” He’s defended hunters against subsistencelaw restrictions a case now before the Alaska Supreme Court. He’s served on the NRA’s legal action committee battling handgun control.”
@akmuckraker (15:06:31) :
I think I need something much stronger than aspirin!
@mmboucher Florida (15:02:13) :
@~tewise — You should probably point out that DU post was from Phil Munger. He was spoofin’ and it was very funny.
FYI,
CNN’s Rick Sanchez did cover the Volcano story a little. Mostly poking fun at Bobby Jindal angle though. Not so much on GINO. I posted this comment to the earliest thread before the new ones today. I will re-paste my comments. I called (and emailed )my 2 Senators , my Governor, AND Your GINO. Her Office phone call was the most interesting…. as you can read.
=========================
honestyinGovNo Gravatar (10:28:12) :
As a follow-up to my (01:10:28) post. I made a phone call to Chevron last night. This morning after hearing there were more eruptions I talked to people in both Senator Boxers office and well as speaking to someone in Gov. Schwarzenegger Office saying nothing was being done based on the internet stories coming from people on the ground in AK. I asked them to please ‘take action ‘.
My very LAST phone call was actually to your GINO.. the number was posted under the story.
Your Gov’s call was the MOST interesting. I told my story to the first operator. I was put on hold for about a minute. When someone picked up again it was a brand new person… much younger. Since I was talking to a NEW person I asked if I needed to start all over with my Question..? I repeated to the second person what I said before. Her attitude to me was (a little snippy )…”We are working on it.” Rather than take it seriously she was all defensive and wanted to blow me off..”we are working on it”
The cavalier attitude and/or defensive posture was totally different than the call to both my Senator or Governor’s Office. I guess this is that ‘folksy’ way your GINO does business and operates…. Yu.. betcha.
I do feel sorry for Alaskans.
the problem child (an aunt, also) oops thank you I didn’t realize that is what is was.
TewiseNo Gravatar (15:11:06) :
and here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=138×2902………another snippet; The Governor stresses that her taxes are a personal matter, not the business of the IRS, and that further inquiries about them should be directed to her tax attorney, Wayne Anthony Ross, or to the officers of the Alaska Independence Party.
——–
giggle giggle giggle, snicker snicker snicker, belly laugh! don’t make me clean my keyboard. How dare we parade her tax issues. more snicker. Call the Onion.
AKM–I love mudflats and your stories–you are truly gifted and I am thankful for what you have created. I wanted to mention one thing that is interesting. You have mentioned that GINO hasnot made any official announcement or press release regarding Mt. Redoubt on the state website. She has however made a news release about Mt. Redoubt on SarahPac. That is clearly another illustration of who she is trying to communication with and it is certainly –NOT ALASKANS.
Keep up the good work!!!
Death spiral! Pull up! Pull up! Queen GINO, she’s gonna blow! Help!
I watched a Gordon Ramsey episode where he and a celebrity dude were tossing a coin about who would eat the still beating chunk of a heart of an eel. Picture the celebrity tossing back the still beating chunk of GINO’s heart, with a swig of water. “Not bad!”
Sorry. How about my recipe for Chili Relleno Casserole? (dinner tonight)
A couple of cans of roasted green chilis
some fat slices of jack or jalapeno jack cheese
beaten eggs with some cumin and salt and pepper
salsa
put slices of cheese inside green chili
pour beaten seasoned egg over stuffed chilis
throw a little salsa on top
bake until puffy
top with a bit of shredded lettuce and/or cilantro
eat
I got the original recipe from big sis, Alaska Pi. I ad lib a lot, but the core value of recipe remains. good with beer.
womanwithsardinecanNo Gravatar (16:25:28) :
Picture the celebrity tossing back the still beating chunk of GINO’s heart, with a swig of water. “Not bad!”
Sorry. How about my recipe for Chili Relleno Casserole? (dinner tonight)
A couple of cans of roasted green chilis
some fat slices of jack or jalapeno jack cheese
beaten eggs with some cumin and salt and pepper
salsa
put slices of cheese inside green chili
pour beaten seasoned egg over stuffed chilis
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I think I will pass on GINO’s beating servant’s heart,lol but
YUM, thanks for the chili relleno recipe!
honestyinGovNo Gravatar (15:49:10) :
FYI,
CNN’s Rick Sanchez did cover the Volcano story a little. Mostly poking fun at Bobby Jindal angle though. Not so much on GINO. I posted this comment to the earliest thread before the new ones today. I will re-paste my comments. I called (and emailed )my 2 Senators , my Governor, AND Your GINO. Her Office phone call was the most interesting…. as you can read.
=========================
honestyinGovNo Gravatar (10:28:12) :
As a follow-up to my (01:10:28) post. I made a phone call to Chevron last night. This morning after hearing there were more eruptions I talked to people in both Senator Boxers office and well as speaking to someone in Gov. Schwarzenegger Office saying nothing was being done based on the internet stories coming from people on the ground in AK. I asked them to please ‘take action ‘.
My very LAST phone call was actually to your GINO.. the number was posted under the story.
Your Gov’s call was the MOST interesting. I told my story to the first operator. I was put on hold for about a minute. When someone picked up again it was a brand new person… much younger. Since I was talking to a NEW person I asked if I needed to start all over with my Question..? I repeated to the second person what I said before. Her attitude to me was (a little snippy )…”We are working on it.” Rather than take it seriously she was all defensive and wanted to blow me off..”we are working on it”
The cavalier attitude and/or defensive posture was totally different than the call to both my Senator or Governor’s Office. I guess this is that ‘folksy’ way your GINO does business and operates…. Yu.. betcha.
I do feel sorry for Alaskans.
———–
Way cool! I’m impressed at your determination! Of course, the result was expected…
Trying to get back on topic and posting with a little haste because I have an appointment to make.
I read the press release on the CIPL site and found at least a couple of things a bit dubious. One that caught my eye was the statement that there were ~74,000 barrels in both tanks… that implies 148,000 barrels. Which is it?
Regarding the “special equipment” claim, I suspect but cannot be sure that would be an oil tanker. Or maybe two as previously mentioned. This is a terminal for a pipeline, the oil comes in from the producers is loaded aboard tankers and shipped to refineries.
Keeping a quantity of oil in the two up stream tanks is a plausible tactic ni the context of ordinary floods. The rationale I assume, is that the mass of the oil in the tank makes it much more resistant to the effect of water pressure from a flood if the containment berm is breached. I am skeptical, however, that this logic applies in this case. A major Lahar on the drift river would not be anything like an ordinary flood. The erosive and hence the destructive effect of any “flow” depends on its own mass, its velocity, and the cross sectional area of the surfaces on which it acts among other things, so roughly the fourth power. I would welcome the input of any hydrologist to address these concerns as I am not one, but the principles seem pretty clear to me.
How much oil is produced from Cook Inlet and how would that impact the local economy if its production was suspened for a few months?
Finally I think some clarification needs to be made with respect to what is being talked about here in terms of the “saftey infrastructure” for this tank farm. Just by looking at the photographs is appears obvious that the main containment berm is just that, a containment berm. It is built at right angles to the direction of flow of the Drift river. So the point is, it was designed to KEEP OIL IN. A simple volumetric calculation can determine if it was adequate to that specification and it probably was. However, that does not equate to keeping floods of catostrophic proportions, or massive Lahars from the melting of a nearly entire glacier, OUT.
If the relatively minor eruptions that have occurred so far have breached the containment dikes by overflow, what would be the effect of an eruption that produced 100 times the volume of Lahar material? While it is true that the terminal is built on the Drift river delta and the force of the Lahar and its primary direction would be dissapated somewhat, it is hard to imagine how a flow of dense material 50 meters high would not wipe the tank farm off the map.
One point to conclude. The rationale for keeping two tanks with enough oil to resist ordinary flooding, seems to be to preserve the tank farm. It has nothing to do with the worst case scenario. IOW the operating companies appear to be readily able to accept the possibility that the whole tank farm could be destroyed by a major event, and along with it the entire Cook Inlet fisheries, etc. etc. but they are BETTING, that no such scenario will occur.
Don’t you love it when other people can gamble away your future?
I still think they should take extraordinary measures to move the oil now.
Granted they have minimized the amount of oil there, but that is lip service. Oil pollution is insidious and ubiquitous.
Now I have to go….
OH. MY. GOD.
Come on, Bloggers. . . Sarah HAS spoken on the tank farm. “Spill, Baby, Spill.”
The following website, on the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation site, gives you some more information regarding spill response planning for Drift River, natural resources at risk in the area, etc.
http://www.dec.state.ak.us/SPAR/perp/response/sum_fy09/090324201/090324201_index.htm
At this point it appears they are putting out one situation report per day. And they have links to natural resource maps, etc. Some of you might find this to be interesting reading.
They do this for most moderate to big spills (and potential spills). Not just this (potential) spill.
Hi all, A new poster here, but a long time lurker. Be nice
Regarding the tank farm… Should a disaster happen and the tanks are breached, ( God forbid )
Would that make the price per barrel of oil go up ?
Because just maybe, that is what GINO is hoping for ( stop the flow of oil long enough ) hence being back in line with her budget.
There is hardly nothing i would put past her.
JMO but something i was pondering.
Corine56 (07:09:07) :
Hi all, A new poster here, but a long time lurker. Be nice
Regarding the tank farm… Should a disaster happen and the tanks are breached, ( God forbid )
Would that make the price per barrel of oil go up ?
Because just maybe, that is what GINO is hoping for ( stop the flow of oil long enough ) hence being back in line with her budget.
There is hardly nothing i would put past her.
JMO but something i was pondering.
———-
Hi Corine56! Welcome.
I kind of got the impression that the oil is for use in Alaska, which would only make the price of oil go up in Alaska — so not likely to help GINO with voters at home.
Also, although this is a lot of oil in the context of a spill, I don’t think this is a lot of oil in the context of oil production. I believe this amount is less than a single day’s production for the State.
SMR — help me out here!