Repair planned for small leak in trans-Alaska pipeline, leaking only 1 teaspoon a day

Alyeska Pipeline Service Co. is working on a repair for a small crude oil leak found in a buried section of the trans-Alaska pipeline, but for now an employee with a rag suffices.

The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports (http://bit.ly/1Cqf8HY ) that the company's Fairbanks shop is building a metal sleeve to contain the leak in a fitting between two pipes.

The company reported May 29 that the pipeline had leaked 10 gallons, but Alyeska spokeswoman Michelle Egan says it is now dripping less than a teaspoon a day.

The company is sending an employee to wipe the fitting twice a day to manage the oil.

The trans-Alaska pipeline has seen several spills of hundreds or thousands of gallons. Egan says the drip is unusual.

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Information from: Fairbanks (Alaska) Daily News-Miner, http://www.newsminer.com