By CRYSTAL GARCIA
Port Huron Times Herald
In the wake of the recent disastrous oil spill in the Kalamazoo River, U.S. Rep. Candice Miller has called on government agencies to act proactively to protect the Great Lakes.
Miller, R-Harrison Township, has sent a request to the Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety Administration and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee to expand investigations of Enbridge Energy's Line 6B pipeline spill, to include locations near the St. Clair River.
The letters, dated Tuesday, state Line 6B -- source of the July 26 spill into the Kalamazoo River -- was found to have more than 200 anomalies between mileposts 650 and 753 in June 2009. Instead of making necessary repairs, the energy company chose to operate the pipeline at a reduced pressure, the letters stated.
The anomalies have not been repaired, the letters stated. While the pipeline section that caused the spill is at the 608 milepost, the sections with anomalies are in closer proximity to the St. Clair River.
"I don't want to wait until we have an incident," Miller said. "Not to be an alarmist, but let's be proactive and make sure (Enbridge) is addressing the anomalies they need to."
Miller sits on the House Railroads and Pipelines subcommittee, and said the panel anticipates a hearing on the situation.
"We need to expand the scope of the hearing to really look at the whole system," she said. Miller said she hoped a hearing would be in September.
Such an investigation would help prepare emergency crews if a situation occurs, she said. Such crews need to understand the pipelines and the status of them, she said.
They also should know and have access to all required equipment if an emergency occurs, Miller said. This should be part of the county's emergency management plan as well as plans in other counties through which the pipeline runs, such as Macomb and Ingham, she said.
"There has to be a much greater sense of urgency for any kind of an anomaly in a pipeline that is by the Great Lakes," Miller said, noting that, if an incident such as the July 26 disaster occurred in the St. Clair River, oil could get into the drinking supply of millions of people.
Miller said she is "interested in making laws as stringent as they need to be" to get things done.
When it comes to areas close to supplies of fresh water, she said, "we need to have zero tolerance."
About 15 miles of the 6B Line run through St. Clair County to end in Sarnia, said Jeff Friedland, emergency management director for St. Clair County.
Friedland said he hasn't seen Enbridge's plan to repair the pipeline, but said Miller made the right move in calling for an expanded investigation.
"To err on the side of safety -- I would welcome that push," he said.
Friedland said much of the country's infrastructure should be investigated for possible repairs because many sites are deteriorating.
"Somehow, we need to work to make the country more structurally sound," he said.