Pipeline neighbors say they’re living in fear
WEST CHESTER >> How can Chester and Delaware county residents cope with odorless, colorless, tasteless, but sometimes hissing and noisy, highly volatile gasses, when released from high speed pipeline transport?
More than a dozen testified on the second day of testimony, during a state Public Utilities Commission pipeline hearing overseen by Elizabeth Barnes, administrative law judge, on Thursday at the Historic Chester County Courthouse.
Several who testified said that evacuation and safety procedures had not been released by Mariner East pipeline builder Sunoco/Energy Transfer.
Sunoco/ET recently announced that pipelines are 99 percent finished, with an expected late 2019 completion date. The pipes would weave across the breadth of Pennsylvania for
22 miles of Chester County and 11 miles through Delaware County to the Marcus Hook Refinery in Delaware County. Pipeline foes have bitterly fought the project, while saying that the 350mile pipeline route passes through high density areas, including near 41 schools.
First to testify was Caroline Hughes of East Goshen. Her testimony lasted almost 2 ½ hours. She works at an ambulatory care center, at Exton Mall, near the construction and also lives close to the proposed route.
“There’s no plan in place,” she said. “(The effect of a rupture) would be extraordinarily hard to evaluate.”
“It’s an impossible task. There are a lot of unanswered questions.”
Hughes said her first responsibility is to help her children, the community next and herself last.
“We’re looking at many dead children,” she said. “That’s why many of us have come to this table.”
“If we can’t detect it, how are we supposed to know what to do?”
Bibianna Dussling hails from Delaware County and served as a military helicopter pilot, with nine years of emergency preparedness training. She “prepared for disasters all the time.” She talked about younger children in an evacuation situation.
“They are extremely slow and sometimes move in different directions,” she said. “They won’t respond as quickly as older children.”
West Chester Area School District Superintendent Jim Scanlon said a school can be evacuated, but early notice is important. The first course of action is to stay in place and formulate a plan.
Scanlon said the district reached out for additional information from Sunoco and was given answers on the depth of the pipe, the distance from schools and about shut off valves.
Sunoco has said that it would not put odor into the propane, ethane and methane shipped because some of it will be used in other countries to make odorless plastic bottles.
“Our goal is to make things safe and positive for our kids, staff and community,” he said. “If we could put odor into the lines that would protect us.”
Ronald Gradina, is a township supervisor and Edgmont Township Volunteer Fire Company #1 member.
“I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do,” he said. “There are no meters, we need to detect this product.
“I’m less than comfortable.”
During a lunch break Ginny Kerslake and Josh Maxwell talked about the community effort to fight Sunoco.
“I’m incredibly proud of the 10 residents who have made this public hearing possible by bringing forward their concerns for public safety to the PUC in the form of a consolidated, formal complaint,” Kerslake said.
Maxwell is running for county commissioner and is mayor of Downingtown.
“Chester County residents are thankful that members of our community are standing up to protect all of us against a power like Sunoco,” he said.
Nancy Harkins is from Westtown Township and wondered about evacuation plans.
“There is a lack of an adequate safety and evacuation plan,” she said. “Our community is very vulnerable.”
Kevin Campbell is director of facilities and operations for the WCASD.
“There is a lack of information,” Campbell said. “Since I don’t have all the information, I can’t form and effective plan. “Timeliness is critical.” Eleanor DiMarino-Linnen is superintendent of the Rose-Tree Media School District and talked about the pipeline’s close proximity to schools.
“The information we have gotten from Sunoco has been really general,” she said. “Sunoco is not required to tell us what is running through these lines.”
Twin Valley High School Principal Bill Clements said students would likely be evacuated downhill to a field where buses would pick up students.
Commissioners Terence Farrell and Michele Kichline watched from the first row of Courtroom 1. They released a joint statement. Commissioner Kathi Cozzone testified as a private citizen.
“Our emergency services personnel do everything that they can to prepare for, and if necessary, undertake appropriate hazardous materials emergency response actions in the event of a pipeline incident,” said the pair. “The county continually appeals to Energy Transfer/Sunoco to be highly proactive and cooperative with our emergency services personnel and to follow the safety practices and communication efforts of all other utility companies.”
“We ask that the leadership of Energy Transfer turn its focus away from the board room and into the communities in which its pipelines are located. Corporate responsibility to the men, women and children who are directly affected by potential safety incidents deserves as much - if not more - respect than responsibility to company shareholders.
“These two days of hearings have given voice to the Chester and Delaware County communities that just want to ensure those communities remain safe. We appreciate the efforts by the PUC to hold the hearings.”