Sounding the alarm on pipeline safety rollbacks:safety and health advocates demand federal action
The Stop Northwest Gas Expansion Coalition follows Senator Maria Cantwell’s lead, sends letter to federal regulators amid enforcement decline, surge in safety risks.
Oregon, Washington, Idaho — In the wake of sweeping federal enforcement rollbacks on pipeline safety, the Stop Northwest Gas Expansion Coalition has submitted a letter to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), calling for action to restore federal oversight and protect communities across Oregon, Washington, and Idaho from the growing risks of aging gas pipeline infrastructure.
The coalition, composed of health professionals, environmental advocates, frontline communities, and faith leaders, responded to recent reporting in The Washington Post that enforcement actions by PHMSA have plummeted by 95% since the beginning of 2025. Only five enforcement actions were initiated in the first three months of the year.
“This drop in enforcement is a direct threat to the health and safety of our communities. Pipelines like GTN Xpress are aging, under-regulated, and lack transparency and safeguards. This puts lives at risk,” said Peter Fargo, coalition coordinator.
The GTN Xpress expansion was approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in 2023. The expansion increases the volume and pressure of gas moving through an aging pipeline system that runs through wildfire-prone and seismically active areas of the Northwest. As an example of the safety concerns, the letter highlights that more than 13,000 Washingtonians across seven counties live within a “blast zone” and face growing exposure to methane leaks, compressor station blowdowns, and risk of pipeline explosions.
The coalition’s letter, addressed to PHMSA leadership and members of Congress from Washington, Oregon, and Idaho, calls for:
● Restoration of full federal enforcement capacity and staffing;
● Public disclosure of enforcement activity and trends since January 2025;
● Engagement with frontline communities and health experts on pipeline risks; and
● Independent oversight of compliance actions, free from political interference.
“Our communities understand the threats that methane gas pipelines pose – to the air we breathe and our safety. We need regulators to do their jobs, right now, but they’re being told to stand down,” noted Selden Prentice, of 350 Seattle’s Policy Action Team.
“Unfortunately, it now appears that it will be necessary for the governors of Oregon, Washington and Idaho and the appropriate state agencies and public utilities commissions to step up and fill the gap that has has emerged due to inaction at the federal level,” addsJeff Hammarlund, co-chair of the Climate, Energy and Environment Team of the Consolidated Oregon Indivisible Network. A retired professor of climate and energy policy, Jeff serves on the advisory team that is helping the state of Oregon develop a comprehensive Energy Strategy to provide the tools it will need to meet its major energy and climate policy objectives.
Pipeline incidents have caused more than 250 deaths, over 1000 injuries, and $11 billion in damages in the past 20 years, including an explosion in Bellingham, Washington in 1999 that killed three people and spurred the creation of the Pipeline Safety Trust. The letter warns that recent expansions of fossil fuel infrastructure are increasing the threat of future disasters, particularly in rural and under-resourced communities.
Regarding the GTN Xpress pipeline running through Deschutes County, Diane Hodiak of 350Deschutes said, “A whistleblower has already identified metal defects in this aging 60-year pipeline. A substandard pipeline, past its prime, is an ever-present risk of death and wildfire to anyone living nearby. Oversight and safety inspections should be required, not taken away, along with remediation of vulnerabilities.”
The full letter is available here.
Press contacts:
● Coalition Coordinator, Peter Fargo (pfargo@emoregon.org, 971-825-9569)
● Oregon contact, Diane Hodiak (dhodiak@350deschutes.org, 206-498-5887)
● Washington contact, James Moschella (james@wpsr.org)
For more information, visit:
● https://www.columbiariverkeeper.org/campaigns/gtn-xpress-fracked-gas-pipeline/
● https://350deschutes.org/stop-gtn-xpress-expansion/
● https://rogueclimate.org/our-work/gtn/
