Fund the repair of aging gas pipes: Your Say

Letter to the editor:

Our nation's energy infrastructure system is a complex and vast network, comprising over 2.6 million miles of pipelines stretching from coast to coast ("Look out below: Danger lurks underground from aging gas pipes").

While our underground energy pipelines are quite safe, the existing network is beginning to show signs of age.

In order to address this challenge, more can be done. Increased inspections and added regulations can help, but we cannot regulate ourselves to Nirvana. We must also continue to promote best practices and public awareness, and take steps to address damages caused by third parties.

In established areas of our country where underground utilities are more mature, we must increase funding for repair and remediation in order to enhance the reliability and security of our system. Often, this additional investment can be accomplished only with regulatory rate adjustments.

Taking these steps today will help ensure the continued safety and reliability of the system for decades to come.

Brigham McCown, former administrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration; Washington, D.C.

Comments from Facebook are edited for clarity and grammar:

The entire U.S. infrastructure is crumbling. It's a matter of time before it gets even worse.

— Darius Czekaj

Gas companies are not going to pay for preventive maintenance. They want to keep those profits intact.

— Doris Hundley

This is scary. One summer, I was planting flowers and smelled gas by my meter. It was a leak.

— Cheryl Oles