PG&E Faces Demands For More Information After NTSB Reports Defective Welds.
The San Jose Mercury News (1/25, Johnson, Rogers) reports, "PG&E faced growing demands Monday to provide more detailed information about the construction of the San Bruno pipeline that exploded Sept. 9, amid concerns that its shoddy construction might have been replicated under other Bay Area neighborhoods." That was in response to a NTSB report that "revealed 150 defects in welds along the 43-foot section of pipe that exploded, apparently dating to the installation of the pipe in 1956."
The San Francisco Chronicle (1/23, Nalder) reported, "Federal regulators missed at least two chances before the deadly explosion in San Bruno to force Pacific Gas and Electric Co. and other utilities to collect more accurate information on their gas pipes and use better inspection techniques, a Chronicle investigation has found." And "in November, two months after the explosion, the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration finally enacted a rule that will force companies to report what inspection techniques they are using on pipelines - an idea the agency first considered in 2003 and then rejected."