trans-Alaska pipeline
1
4.5
- noun
- Security measures have been enhanced due to the importance of the trans-Alaska pipeline, which provides a significant portion of the U.S. oil supply.
Examples
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Environmentalists and fishers sought to invoke the provisions of TAPAA and require the owners of the trans-Alaska pipeline to pay a portion of the damages because it could be argued that the spill resulted from pipeline operations.
Academic text (1998) -
But oil production is rapidly declining. The trans-Alaska pipeline is almost three-fourths empty and now carries 25% as much oil as it did at its peak. Since 2007, when the legislature imposed ACES retroactively, North Slope production has declined 21% and continues to decline at an average of 6% per year.
Blog text (33) -
A half mile below the ground at Prudhoe Bay, above the vast oil field that helped trigger construction of the trans-Alaska pipeline, a drill rig has tapped what might one day be the next big energy source.
Blog text (30) -
Congress authorized the trans-Alaska pipeline during the 1973 oil crisis, but in a compromise with maritime unions and environmental groups, the exportation of ANS was prohibited.
Academic text (2001) -
The Exxon Valdez spill spotlighted existing groups that traditionally feared oil development and oil tanker traffic in Alaska, and that opposed the trans-Alaska pipeline from the outset.
Academic text (1998) -
The proposed railway would run more than 1,600 miles from Fort McMurray, Alberta, to Delta Junction, Alaska, where the trans-Alaska pipeline is en route from Prudhoe Bay to Valdez.
Blog text (33) -
The trans-Alaska pipeline transports crude oil from Prudhoe Bay to the port of Valdez, spanning 800 miles.
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In Valdez, the operation and maintenance of the trans-Alaska pipeline are crucial for the local economy.
Synonyms
188
3.7
A long pipe that carries oil or gas across land
16
2.9
A long set of pipes that carries oil between places
1
3.7
An oil pipe in Alaska that runs about 800 miles from Prudhoe Bay to Valdez
1
4.9
A major oil pipeline that runs about 800 miles across Alaska from Prudhoe Bay to Valdez
How Long
1
4.5
- Specialized
16
2.9
Surface Forms
Morphology
trans-Alaska + pipeline
The phrase transparently denotes a pipeline that runs across Alaska: it is compositionally built from the prefix 'trans-' (across) + 'Alaska' + 'pipeline' (a conduit for oil). This is a regular, cross-linguistic compositional pattern, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent parts can readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
The name trans-Alaska pipeline comes from a simple image: the part trans- means 'across' and a pipeline is a long pipe, so it is a very long pipe that runs 'across' Alaska to carry oil from the north to the port in the south.