Over the past twenty years, the Colonial Pipeline that runs through Greensboro, NC has been owned jointly by up to ten oil companies, including a branch of Koch Industries. At one point Koch Industries was the largest owners of the pipeline, which has a despicable record when it comes to protecting the surrounding land and water.

Between 1996 and 2000, multiple spills of fuels like gasoline and kerosene occurred around Greensboro, including two major spills in May 1996 and May 2000. In 1996, 50 gallons of gasoline were spilled into a creek and shoreline near Greensboro, which wasn’t properly reported at the time. Then, almost exactly four years later, a significantly larger spill of 714 gallons of kerosene occurred in a pond that flowed into the East Fork Deep River.

These environmentally damaging accidents led to Colonial Pipeline paying a $34 million court settlement. As of 2012, Koch Industries owned 20% of the Colonial Pipeline. What will they do now to keep Triad area families safe from this path of destruction?

View full research brief after the jump.