Standing Rock Protests

[Irving]

Why a problem with a pipeline under the water source?

[Dave_L]

Why a problem with a pipeline under the water source?

From what I've read, the "standards" for this are 4 feet under the water source. I read somewhere that this pipeline is supposed to be 90' under but I haven't been able to confirm that. What I read was (2-4 ft) is the standard. That includes major rivers, farm irrigation, etc. Its all the same. The concern is that if it leaks, it'd still contaminate the water. There's also been some examples of the pipe becoming exposed in the river bed as the bed erodes away and then the pipe starts leaking.

[Grant H.]

Personally I would have a considerable amount of problems with a pipeline under my water source...realize that is a water source for a large chunk of that region in some part or another.

That said, if they focused on that instead of all of the shit that isn't actually true, it would have gained far more traction early on.

This. Except that I bet you every single water source you pull from has a pipeline under it. Take a look at the maps of pipelines in this country. You can't get away from them being under your water source.

I know a few of the guys involved in the pipeline project, and the media circus that this has become is all based on a farce.

This doesn't cross NA land, it doesn't effect their ability to live on the land they have, and with the exception of the pipeline crossing under the river, it doesn't pose any possible risk.

As for the possibility of a leak under the river contaminating the river, sure, anything is possible. However, people that haven't been involved, and don't know, have no clue about the stringent tests that are required for pipelines being put in the ground. Welders have to be certified, all welds are tested thoroughly and THEN xray'd for integrity, then there is pressure testing, and then they get to put it in the ground. But oh, guess what, it gets tested more once it's been buried, so it's back to high pressure testing (significantly higher than the pressures of running crude through the pipeline), and it all still has to pass. It's not some simple water/sewer pipe. So, the likelihood of a leak? Pretty damn low.

Don't want a pipeline? Sweet, so you must like truck/train traffic for all that crude being moved. Guess what, trucks and trains cause way more spills than pipelines. The simple nature of the process lends itself to more spills. Move the oil from the production facility to a truck (flexible pipes, truck mounted pumps, operator error, etc), haul the truck (with some dumbass driver) across highways and streets to a depot. Now we unload the truck into tanks (flexible pipes, truck mounted pumps, operator error, etc) so we can pump it into rail cars (flexible pipes, truck mounted pumps, operator error, etc), now we ship it on down the way via train and hope the train doesn't have a problem and cause a spill (happens more than UPRR et all want to admit), so we can unload it into tanks again at the refinery (flexible pipes, truck mounted pumps, operator error, etc)...

Right, because that's way less likely to have issues that a highly tested, welded, pipe that's buried in the ground away from dumbasses and their shenanigans...

I won't even get into the hypocrisy of all this. That's too easy, and should be apparent to anyone that understands what the O/G industry really supports...

[Dave_L]

The analogy I always heard was "If you're going to move a bunch of water while trying to spill as little as possible, are you going to move it bucket by bucket? Or get a hose/tube to flow it through?".

[GilpinGuy]

Pipelines are much safer than any other means of transporting petroleum. There are thousands and thousands of miles of pipelines in the US. When was the last big leak that significantly effected anyone? I really don't know (and haven't searched).

[JohnnyDrama]

That said, if they focused on that instead of all of the shit that isn't actually true, it would have gained far more traction early on.

I think that's part of what happened. Everybody was focused on Keystone while this project was quietly being laid out, surveyed, and working it's way through the permitting process. By the time anybody got wind of Dakota Access, everybody who needed to sign off on it had done so.

[earplug]

There are numerous job openings at the Standing Rock Reservation. One is for a breast feeding facilitator trainer.

[CS1983]

Not hard to see why they're pissed.

[WETWRKS]

Not hard to see why they're pissed.

I'm sorry but why are they just now protesting and if they are pissed about the loss of territory then why are they protesting a pipeline instead of the loss of territory? Why is it they are protesting against a corporation and not the Federal government? That is just the liberal media trying to justify their actions. Most likely this has more to do with $ than anything.

[CS1983]

I'm sorry but why are they just now protesting and if they are pissed about the loss of territory then why are they protesting a pipeline instead of the loss of territory? Why is it they are protesting against a corporation and not the Federal government? That is just the liberal media trying to justify their actions. Most likely this has more to do with $ than anything.

Take a piece of paper and write your ancestry on it. Have someone take it from you and tear off a piece. Again, tear off a piece. Now tear another. And another. Now let someone take your last few scraps and decide they want to do something with it you don't want them to.

And when you are done with this exercise, and looking at your little piece of paper, your patrimony on the floor, having protested for generations, you might see why something so small would be such a big deal to them.