pipeline penalties

On Tuesday, legislation was passed to strengthen laws regarding 1.6 million miles of pipeline in the US used to transport oil and other petroleum products and natural gas. The following paragraph just jumped out at me while reading the article:

An average of four major pipeline accidents causing death, injury or property
damage of more than $50,000 occur each week, according to the General Accounting Office. But environmental groups claim only one in 25 pipeline violators are hit with fines.

The law calls for more safety inspections, and greater penalties for companies that "don't keep their pipelines in good condition."