Visualizing the Danger

As I watch the Usw Gasworkers videos of replacement workers’ hazardous errors and read the reports of the utility companies’ flawed operations and the failures of state and federal oversight, I am reminded of the 1937 Texas School Gas Explosion that killed more than 300 students, teachers and visitors.

In 1937, school, town and oil company officials ignored warnings and agreed to look the other way as their unnecessary shortcuts and reckless indifference endangered a whole generation in a small East Texas town. Yet while the Court of Inquiry identified a series of design, building and operations problems and unheeded warnings, they named no one responsible. They concluded that school officials were just "average individuals, ignorant or indifferent to the need for precautionary measures, where they cannot, in their lack of knowledge, visualize a danger or a hazard." (Court of Inquiry, 1937.)

Today no one can claim that we cannot visualize the danger of our leaky gas infrastructure. Only those willfully blind are indifferent to the photos of explosions and fires in Merrimack Valley, the stories of death, injuries, devastation and trauma, and the system wide long-standing deficiencies such as those detailed in the November 1 USA Today article.

The danger grows by the day.  None of us can ignore the fact that thousands of leaks in Massachusetts communities have gone unrepaired for years while the utility companies charge customers millions of dollars for the lost gas.  

We have learned that old records and maps of the pipes and turn-off valves, if they exist, can be dangerously misleading and inaccurate. And many repairs do not stop the leaks. Even after ruptures and explosions are repaired, as in Prince George BC and in Merrimack Valley, the supply can be unreliable for a long time.

The truth is that, even if the utility companies had enough money to replace all the pipes, which they don’t, there are not enough field inspectors to oversee the quality of pipeline work. They do not have enough qualified personnel to do the work yet they continue to lock out experienced union gas workers. Nor are Governor Baker’s appointments to the Department of Public Utilities diligent in their oversight of the utility companies. The danger is heightened by state and federal safety regulations and standards that vary widely and often are not enforced.

No More Willful Blindness. The 1937 disaster resulted in a law requiring adding mercaptan as a warning odor to natural gas. As a result, in our own neighborhoods, we can smell the sulphurous “rotten eggs” when we walk our children to school or take our dogs around the block or go out to pick up the newspaper. Sometimes the odor is so strong we can smell the gas as we drive by, especially where holes have been drilled in the street pavement to vent the fumes instead of fixing a leak.

Inspirational Leadership. The growing grassroots organization Mothers Out Front has become a bold public advocate for policies and standards that respond to the threats of climate change and for accountability from government and corporate officials.

Breaking the silence. Rooted in a shared sense of unquenchable responsibility, Mothers Out Front state and community teams have built partnerships to fight for improved maintenance of the aging gas distribution system and to expose the health impacts of fracked gas all along the supply chain. Their ultimate goal is a swift complete and just transition away from fossil fuels and toward a future based on clean and renewable energy.

Mothers Out Front Newton applauds Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller and City Councilors who have taken an honest clear eyed look at the dangerous condition of our aging gas pipelines and the inadequacy of the gas companies’ operations. Their October 30 letter calls on Governor Baker and the MA Department of Public Utilities to live up to their statutory responsibility and act immediately to safeguard our community.

Use Less, Green the Rest. Mothers Out Front Newton is grateful to our City officials for speaking up for the safety and sustainability of our community and taking meaningful steps to promote clean renewable energy and energy efficiency in City programs and policies.

Lessons Learned. Indeed, we can all visualize a livable future and must take responsibility for achieving it.

~~~~~

Newton Pushes Governor On Gas Regulation After Merrimack Valley, 'We count on you to protect us from the risks associated with the use of natural gas,' say the Newton Mayor and City Councilors in a letter. Nov 1, 2018.

Lessons of the 1937 Texas School Explosion  

Utility Company "NiSource's" bad practices led to deadly Massachusetts Gas explosions, says the National Transportation Safety Board
November 15, 2018 

Every Town Needs A Squeaky Leak Project

Healthy Kids Hero 2017 Audrey Schulman, Cambridge MA

For Release February 2, 2017

Contact: Ellie Goldberg, ellie.goldberg@healthy-kids.info
Blog: ​LESSONS OF THE 1937 TX SCHOOL EXPLOSION​ 

Every year, to mark the anniversary of the March 18, 1937 Texas School Explosion, I salute a hero for inspirational leadership and a commitment to the safety of children and their communities.

The Hero Award was created as an annual opportunity to remember the 1937 tragedy — a gas explosion that killed more than 300 people, mostly students, in their new state-of-the-art public school where no expense had been spared except when it came to safety.

​
One lesson the 1937 tragedy is that a safe quality environment depends on champions with an extraordinary sense of responsibility. We can't take it for granted that elected officials make community safety or health a priority.

Audrey Schulman is the 2017 Hero because of her strategic advocacy and creative leadership confronting the threat of Climate Change. She is raising awareness of methane leaks from old pipelines, engaging ever widening circles of allies and partners, and achieving major advances in utility company cooperation and infrastructure best practices.

“​The federal government won’t take action 

on a clean energy future, but we can.“

​Creating a Culture of Responsibility. 

Schulman is a master at connecting the dots from data to public policy. Policy makers, advocates and utility companies who share her sense of urgency about reducing methane emissions rely on Schulman for accurate data, beautifully designed resources, and trusted relationships.

“Audrey took the results from our 2013 Boston gas study to the next level by meticulously mapping leaks from hard-to-access records in over 200 cities and towns in the Commonwealth. Along the way she has engaged and activated communities to create a groundswell of public support to save ratepayer money, our urban trees, air quality and our climate. Audrey is a hero for all these reasons but most of all for our children's health and their future.” — Boston University Professor Nathan Phillips. 

"Audrey Schulman has diligently worked to reduce energy bills in houses of worship, plug holes in leaking gas lines and make our state's government work better. She's incredibly thorough, creative, persistent and a great contributor to the environmental movement.” — Joel Wool, Advocate for Energy and Environment at Clean Water Action/MA

​... Schulman's efforts will have implications for the efficient and quality management of gas pipelines nationwide and for shaping legislation for regulating utilities. The results will save municipalities, utilities and ratepayers the huge cost of lost gas, avoid disruptive and duplicative road work, lower the health and life-threatening safety risks of neighborhood gas leaks, and reduce the threat of climate change.

Read full ​story: Every Town Needs A Squeaky Leak Project

Contact: Ellie Goldberg, ellie.goldberg@healthy-kids.info

​Blog: ​LESSONS OF THE 1937 TX SCHOOL EXPLOSION​

Heroes 2004 - 2016  |  Who Is Your 2018 Hero?

TURA 25th Anniversary Leaders 

The Toxics Use Reduction Act (TURA) program recognized companies and small business groups as TURA 25th Anniversary Leaders. Massachusetts companies are leading the way to reduce toxic chemical use. Watch the video celebrating all TURA 25th Anniversary Leaders. ​​(Video 2:29 min)​
 
Hear what ChemGenes Corp., Stainless Steel Coatings, Inc. and Allston Collision Center have to say.

Representative Paul A. Schmid III

Representative Paul Schmid III and Senator Anne Gobi congratulate all nine TURA 25th Anniversary Leaders. 

Senator Anne M. Gobi

 

List of 2015 nine leading businesses.
TURI offers services & programs to reduce the use of toxic chemicals, energy and water while enhancing the competitiveness of local businesses.  Visit us at our website, at Facebook, or at our offices on the UMass Lowell campus.

Gas leak bill a key legislative step for safety  

Gloucester Daily Times  Editorial: 2/20/14

It’s been just over five years now since a gas explosion, on a frigid Sunday morning in January 2009, literally blew apart the 76 Eastern Ave. house owned by Gloucester police officer Wayne Sargent, rocked the neighborhood around it, and had much of the city on edge for weeks through a number of reported leaks and repairs that followed.

All of us, of course, are grateful that Sargent miraculously survived that blast, which — among other things — blew the house’s front door into the middle of the street, and incredibly drove a rear cellar bulkhead some 20 feet up into a tree.

Now, five years later, we should be grateful on another count — that Sargent, whose home has been rebuilt, has also been able to work with state Rep. Ann-Margaret Ferrante on legislation aimed at shoring up gas inspections, repair records and other safety measures on a bill now winding through the Legislature.

Ferrante, who joined her House colleagues in approving the bill and sending it on to the Senate last week, says the measure will enhance the state’s ability to both guard against natural gas leaks and bolster public utility safety, while also creating an infrastructure replacement program to accelerate the process replacing aging pipelines and lower capital costs for companies and gas rates for consumers... MORE

"Lessons Learned from AHERA: Asbestos Management in Schools" Dr. Charles Levenstein 
at the 9th Annual International Asbestos Awareness Conference, March 22-24, 2013 in Washington, DC.
 www.adao.us

1. Passing a law does not solve the problem

2. Management (schools and elsewhere) may not be competent to manage highly hazardous technology.

3. Only vigilance by workers (teachers) and users (parents) can ensure compliance -- and sometimes may not be enough.

See the complete talk at LINK 

More at ADAO 2013 Annual International Asbestos Awareness Conference Agenda & Videos

I-Team: Thousands Of Gas Leaks Across Mass.

By WBZ-TV Chief Correspondent Joe Shortsleeve

November 22, 2013

BOSTON (CBS) – It’s a smell that catches our attention immediately: the unique odor of natural gas. By one estimate, there are more than 20,000 gas leaks across Massachusetts at this time. That not only presents a public safety concern, but one for ratepayers as well.

More: http://boston.cbslocal.com/2013/11/22/i-team-thousands-of-gas-leaks-across-mass/

Nathan Phillips is a meter-reader for the 21st century.

The College of Arts & Sciences associate professor of geography and environment recently piled into a Nissan Murano with collaborators Bob Ackley and Eric Crosson and rambled through the streets of greater Boston to hunt for natural gas leaks. With the help of a strange-looking vacuum device attached to the car just below the rear bumper, the three have found geysers of gas gushing invisibly from underground pipes corroded by age. The leaks, Phillips says, contribute to global warming, could create explosions in some extreme cases, have killed or damaged up to 10,000 trees in Massachusetts (a disputed matter under litigation), and shaft rate-paying gas customers who must pick up the tab for wasted gas.

Much more 

Inspiring 2008 Hero Nominee -- Dwight Peavey

Dwight Peavey, PhD Senior Scientist at US EPA Region I
Nominated by Rick Reibstein of the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, Office of Technical Assistance and Technology
 
Dr. Peavey is the regional expert on toxic chemicals and their environmental fate and adverse effects on the environment and human health. In the last five years, he has brought an "integrated chemical management program" to several Massachusetts schools systems.

He has saved these schools thousands of dollars in hazardous chemical removal, reduced chemical exposure to teachers, staff and students, minimized liability, and created integrated real time "pharmacy-like" chemical management. In addition to providing better chemical security, integrated chemical management programs lead to additional cost savings as schools avoid unnecessary re-ordering and expensive specialized storage.

Massachusetts is one of six states where schools are not required to have a chemical hygiene program. Nor is it an OSHA state. So Dr. Peavey's success in risk reduction in schools is attributable to his initiative and unique dedication, as well as his expertise and interpersonal skills.

"During my watch, no harm should come to a child." says Dr. Peavey. "When a child or a teacher goes to school, he should come home in the same condition he went there."

Dr. Peavey is EPA's New England Small Business Ombudsman, Chemical Right-To-Know liaison, Brominated Flame Retardant expert and the Senior Assistance Coordinator. He is the regional coordinator for the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) Program under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act. Dwight serves as the regional Persistent Bioaccumulative Toxics (PBTs) and High Production Volume Chemical Challenge Program liaison.

In his various positions, Dr. Peavey has made presentations at state, regional, national and international seminars, workshops and conferences on all aspects of small business assistance, EPCRA, Toxics Release Inventory, Pollution Prevention, PBTs, Chemical Right-To-Know, and EPA's Small Business Policy. As the regional Small Business Ombudsman, Dr. Peavey has partnered with SBTAPs, the Small Business Development Centers, colleges/universities and various small business trade associations throughout New England.

Prior to EPA, Dr. Peavey was the executive director for the Cape Cod Cranberry Growers Association, consultant to the Massachusetts Department of Food and Agriculture, and assistant professor at the SUNY Geneseo.