PG&E accused of gas pipeline violations.
Eight years after a PG&E gas line exploded in San Bruno and killed eight people, state regulators are investigating whether the embattled utility has continued to falsify pipeline safety records, a practice that contributed to the deadly blast.
In a Friday filing, the state Public Utilities Commission said it had opened an investigation into the utility. The filing claimed that PG&E didn’t have enough staffers attempting to locate and mark natural gas pipelines, pressured supervisors to complete work, presided over multiple instances of falsifying records and data, and was aware of reports from outside parties that there were discrepancies in the records.
“Utility falsification of safety related records is a serious violation of law and diminishes our trust in the utility’s reports on their progress,” PUC President Michael Picker said.
The alleged violations occurred from 2012 through 2017.
“This investigation will assess PG&E’s compliance with the law pertaining to locating and marking of natural gas distribution pipelines, and related requirements to timely and accurately inform construction personnel and private persons on the location of PG&E’s underground pipes,” according to the order that was filed by the PUC on Friday.
San Francisco-based PG&E is already a convicted felon for crimes it committed before and after the lethal explosion of natural gas in 2010 that destroyed a quiet San Bruno neighborhood.
“What PG&E has been saying about improving its gas system and making it safe was just another PG&E lie,” said state Sen. Jerry Hill, whose district contains parts of Santa Clara and San Mateo counties, including San Bruno.
The new PUC disclosures appear to be a serious setback for PG&E’s claims that it has been making steady progress under the leadership of CEO Geisha Williams to operate a safe and reliable gas system and dramatically improve its safety culture. PG&E has circulated numerous advertisements to buttress those safety claims.
PG&E admitted on Friday that its efforts related to gas safety were inadequate.
“We’re committed to accurate and thorough reporting and record-keeping,” PG&E spokesman Matt Nauman said Friday. “We didn’t live up to that commitment in this case.”
The utility claimed that it had already taken action to remedy the shortcomings.
“Among those actions are: improvements to our system that tracks 811 tickets, (digging related reports) an upgraded review and audit protocol, hiring more employees and enhanced training for employees, to perform this work,” Nauman said.
In the wake of the lethal San Bruno blast, federal investigators determined the disaster was caused by PG&E’s shoddy maintenance and flawed record keeping, along with the PUC’s lazy oversight of PG&E.
“We are aware of and cooperating with the PUC’s investigation,” Nauman said.
Hill recalled that hearings leading up to passage of a pipeline excavation safety bill he authored, including witness accounts that PG&E efforts to accurately mark gas pipelines were riddled with flaws and falsehoods.
“The witnesses said PG&E falsified records, they did not accurately mark where the gas pipes were supposed to be, and PG&E would come back and cover up the mistakes afterwards,” Hill said.
The state PUC proceeding will require the utility to prove why the regulatory agency should not certify a report from the PUC’s Safety and Enforcement Division and impose penalties and take other measures against PG&E, depending on the finding of violations. The proceeding will be akin to a court hearing.
“These findings are another example of why we are investigating PG&E’s safety culture,” Picker said.
The disclosures about PG&E’s potential safety failures connected to its aging and creaky gas pipeline system come at a time when pressure has mounted on the company in connection with an array of lethal infernos that scorched the North Bay Wine Country in October 2017 and a fatal blaze that tore through Butte County and essentially destroyed the town of Paradise in November.
“Our upcoming consideration of measures that address systemic safety issues at PG&E will determine the best path forward for Northern Californians to receive safe electrical and natural gas service in the future,” Picker said.
The PUC review of the company’s safety culture could include recommendations to break the company into at least two segments, one for gas operations and another for electricity operations.
“The state of California should look at taking over PG&E,” Hill said. “We are lucky we have not had even more tragedies because of PG&E.”