Let’s assume the Keystone Pipeline was already built and it was exposed to the tornado that hit Oklahoma on May 20, 2013.
What kind of environmental disaster would we be looking at? On a scale from 0 to 10 with 10 being the Deep Water Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico 3 years ago, how bad would this disaster be? It is my understanding that the school that was destroyed yesterday where several children died was allegedly one of the most structurally secure buildings in the town.
1) Would the pipeline stop pumping a) when there was a tornado warning, b) only when a tornado touched down, c) only after several hundred (or thousands of) barrels had been pumped out onto the bare ground?
2) What if the power fails and communications towers fail before the pumping actually stops. Does the pipeline have the equivalent of “Check Valves” to stop the flow once the internal pressure falls below some known level indicating a breach in the pipe?
3) Can something be built (even out of steal), that can be truely “tornado proof”?
OR
Would the Keystone Board decide it would be cheaper to clean up and repair rather than build it strong enough to withstand a catastrophic failure?
Note: Before claiming that the pipeline is not in Tornado Country, keep in mind that we have had tornadoes in New England in the not too distant past.