Texas leads the nation in fires, explosions and other serious incidents from natural gas pipelines

Texas is the worst U.S. state when it comes to serious methane gas pipeline accidents such as fires and explosions, according to a report released Thursday by a trio of environmental groups.

Commonly referred to as natural gas, methane is used for cooking and heating, but pipelines carrying it also can develop dangerous leaks, according to the study, released Thursday by the Environment Texas Research and Policy Center, TexPIRG Education Fund and Frontier Group.

From 2010 through near the end of 2021, some 2,600 pipeline breaches occurred in the U.S. that were serious enough to require reporting to the federal government, according to the study. That’s the equivalent to one every 40 hours, according to the authors.

Of the incidents covered in that multi-year stretch, 287 were recorded in Texas, which led the nation in such accidents. According to the data, those incidents, which resulted in both fires and explosions, killed a total of 14 people and injured 58.

“If you look at the states who were at the top of the list, it’s the ones — like Texas — who use a lot of natural gas,” said U.S. PIRG Education Fund Environment Campaigns Director Matt Casale, a co-author of the report. “It indicates that when you use gas, it will leak.”

The Texas pipeline incidents racked up more than $116 million in damages to communities for things such as property damage, emergency services and the value of the escaped gas, according to the analysis. Those leaks released enough gas to have an equivalent effect on global warming to 53,700 passenger vehicles being driven for a year.

The report recommends that U.S. cut its reliance on methane gas for home heating and cooking as well as electricity generation. Instead, policymakers should speed up the nation’s transition to renewable energy, and in the meantime, spend more money to fix leaks in existing gas infrastructure.

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