Criss-crossing the globe like scratches on a mirror, our energy sector has erected enormous structures for transporting fossil fuels. There are more than 250,000 miles of oil pipelines across the world, according to the nonprofit environmental group Global Energy Monitor, and that isn't even counting the nearly 18,000 miles of natural gas pipelines.
With so many potential points for failure, these pipes tend to leak also. Like, a lot. In the U.S., 1.8 million gallons of oil were accidentally spilled in 2020, while a report issued earlier this summer by the nonprofit Public Interest Research Groups found that a methane gas pipeline incident occurs somewhere in the U.S. approximately every 40 hours. They report that between 2010 and 2021, more than 300 of these leaks resulted in explosions and fires that killed 122 and injured over 600.
