Large-scale accidents, such as the Exxon Valdez oil spill, receive attention because of their huge environmental destruction. According to a report put out by The Wilderness Society, during the 12 months following the Exxon Valdez spill, pipeline accidents occurred every day of the year and in every state. These are accidents, but they happen everywhere. They are unavoidable. Unfortunately, they happen everyday in the United States.
Few people hear about accidents outside their community.
Pipeline accidents usually don t generate extensive media attention or government reaction because they don t create sensational television footage. It s not as exciting as a tanker accident leaving blackened beaches and oil-soaked birds. Pipeline accidents injure a few people or damage the environment and are then swept under the rug as if they will be forgotten. It is becoming clear, however, that people are not forgetting. James Pates, a city attorney in Fredricksburg, Va., has been working on pipeline regulation and safety for the past 10 years.