Pipeline

The Trans-Alaska Pipeline System includes the trans-Alaska crude-oil pipeline, 11 pump stations, several hundred miles of feeder pipelines, and the Valdez Marine Terminal, and it is one of the world's largest pipeline systems. The terms Alaska pipeline, trans-Alaska pipeline, and Alyeska pipeline technically apply only to the 800-mile, 48-inch-diameter pipeline that carries oil from Prudhoe Bay to Valdez, Alaska. Oil discovered at Prudhoe Bay in 1968 led to environmental, legal, and political debates, and after the 1973 oil crisis sharply raised oil prices in the United States, exploration of the field became economically feasible and legislation was passed to remove legal challenges to the project. Built between 1974 and 1977, the pipeline required solutions to extreme cold, isolated and difficult terrain, and permafrost, making it one of the first large-scale projects to confront frozen-ground construction problems with special techniques. Work on the pipeline itself began in March 1974 after delays caused by weather, worker hiring, and construction of the Dalton Highway, and between 1974 and July 22, 1977, tens of thousands of workers came to Alaska for high-paying jobs during a national recession, creating a boomtown atmosphere in Valdez, Fairbanks, and Anchorage. Workers endured long hours, cold temperatures, and brutal conditions, and difficult terrain in places such as Atigun Pass, Keystone Canyon, and near the Sagavanirktok River forced solutions to unforeseen problems. More than $8 billion was spent to build the 800 miles of pipeline, the Valdez Marine Terminal, and 12 pump stations, while faulty welds and accusations of poor quality control prompted a Congressional investigation that ultimately revealed little. The first barrel of oil reached Valdez on July 22, 1977, full-scale production began by the end of that year, and by 2010 the pipeline had shipped almost 16 billion barrels of oil. Its construction and completion had immense economic, physical, and social effects on Alaska, the United States, and the world, from small-town life to the global oil market, while 32 Alyeska and contract employees died from causes directly related to construction.

Chena Ridge, Alaska · United States