Pipeline spokesman says sinkholes filled in Gorge
Aug 14 2009
Associated Press
Grafton, N.D. (AP) A spokesman for the Keystone oil pipeline says crews have finished filling seven sinkholes in the scenic Pembina Gorge that were formed after horizontal drilling to bury pipe.
Spokesman Jeff Rauh says the North Dakota Forest Service and the state Public Service Commission approved the plans for repairing the sinkholes. He says the company will monitor them for about a month.
Officials said earlier the sinkholes were about 40 feet deep.
Crews are also installing a pump station in northern Walsh County.
Rauh said the pipeline work is on schedule and he expects oil to start flowing through it by the end of the year.
The Keystone pipeline, owned by TransCanada Corp., is to ship crude oil from the tar sands of Alberta to refineries and shipping hubs in Illinois and Oklahoma.
