Cavern problem prompts sale of stored U.S. oil
Some oil from reserve to be sold
Problem with salt dome means $500 million in crude to go on block
JENNIFER A. DLOUHY, Copyright 2011 Houston Chronicle
Published 6:30 a.m., Thursday, February 17, 2011
WASHINGTON ? The government is preparing to sell $500 million worth of crude oil the U.S. has stockpiled for emergencies because of problems with the integrity of one of the underground caverns where it is stored.
[snip]
The cavern in question ? Bayou Choctaw Cavern 20 near Baton Rouge ? now sits within 60 feet from the edge of a salt dome, defying federal requirements for a salt barrier of at least 300 feet to contain stored material. Seismic research in 2009 detected the problem and showed that the cavern had leached toward the edge of the salt dome?.
