January 2022 Vol. 77 No. 1
Newsline
NEWSLINE
EPA Details Push to Tighten Rules for Lead in Drinking Water
The Environmental Protection Agency is taking steps to tighten rules for allowable levels of lead in drinking water, as the Biden administration looks to replace all of the nation’s lead service lines using new funds from the bipartisan infrastructure bill.
The agency on Dec. 16 announced the first investment of $2.9 billion under the law to replace aging lead pipes, which can leach particles of the heavy metal into drinking water, potentially causing severe developmental and neurological issues.
“The science on lead is settled — there is no safe level of exposure, and it is time to remove this risk to support thriving people and vibrant communities,” said EPA administrator Michael Regan in a statement. The new EPA requirements, which is expected to be finalized by 2024, would require the replacement of remaining lead drinking water pipes “as quickly as is feasible” and could include new testing requirements for drinking water systems.
Congress approved $15 billion for lead service line replacement in the infrastructure bill — about a third less than some estimates for replacing them nationally — but the new rule could close the gap.
The announcement comes is being made in conjunction with other administration efforts to limit lead exposure, including more childhood surveillance testing for lead exposure by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and grants from the Department of Housing and Urban Development to remove lead paint in public housing. The Treasury Department is also announcing that surplus COVID-19 relief funds can be used for lead service line replacement projects.
U.S. Raises Safety Standards for Coastal Pipelines
A new federal regulation for “high consequence” zones requires higher safety standards for pipelines carrying oil and other hazardous liquids through the Great Lakes region, marine coastal waters and beaches, officials said.
The rule issued by the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) requires pipeline operators to step up inspections, repairs and other measures to avoid spills in the designated zones. The new rule – PHMSA’s response to a 2020 Congressional order – is estimated to impact about 3,000 additional miles of pipelines, mostly along the Gulf of Mexico.
It requires operators to include any pipeline that could affect the designated environments in their safety management programs. Procedures include in-line inspections, pressure tests and other methods to measure pipeline integrity, as well as analyses of significant threats such as corrosion.
The natural gas and oil industry “is committed to the safe and environmentally responsible operation of U.S. energy infrastructure, and pipelines remain one of the safest ways to deliver affordable, reliable energy,” said Robin Rorick, a vice president of the American Petroleum Institute. “As our industry works to protect the environment and communities where we live and work, this rule provides the opportunity to further that commitment.”
Environmentalists praised the measure but said they would continue pushing to shut down Enbridge’s Line 5, which moves oil between Superior, Wisconsin, and Sarnia, Ontario. Enbridge said its integrity management program for Line 5 already meets the new requirements.
“Our goal is to protect the waters of the Great Lakes while safely and reliably delivering affordable energy to Michigan and the region daily,” spokesman Ryan Duffy said.
Industry Study Evaluates Underground Facility Locating Process
The American Pipeline Contractors Association (APCA) announced that a comprehensive study of the facility locating process related to excavation construction projects is now available.
The study, “811 Emergency,” examines the 811 operations and facility locating process in every state and the District of Columbia and recommends how underground facility operators may accurately locate and mark their facilities prior to excavation, as required by state damage prevention law.
Among others, APCA said it provided the study to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) and the National Association of Pipeline Safety Representatives, the agencies overseeing federal pipeline, in hopes they will consider its findings as regulations are considered.
“Congress just passed comprehensive infrastructure legislation, meaning a lot of excavation work on the horizon,” said APCA President Taylor Dacus of Troy Construction. “The Emergency 811 study makes a compelling case for many states to improve their 811 programs and backs this up with sound data.”
Navy Halts Use of Fuel Storage Complex Above Hawaii Aquifer
The U.S. Navy announced that it is suspending the use of a massive World War II-era fuel storage complex above a Hawaii aquifer that supplies nearly 20 percent of Honolulu’s drinking water — following days of complaints that tap water smells like fuel and has sickened some people.
Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro traveled to Pearl Harbor and told reporters he was apologizing to everyone affected by what he called a “horrible, horrible tragedy.”
Nearly 1,000 military households have complained about their tap water, and some have said they have suffered physical ailments such as cramps and vomiting recently after drinking it.
A December water sample showed the presence of petroleum in water that comes from a well near the underground fuel tank complex.
Del Toro said officials were getting close to determining the cause of the problem and that when the investigation is completed and reviewed, the Navy will adopt water safety precautions.
New Mexico Water Chief Steps Down Over Lack of Resources
New Mexico’s top water official says a persistent lack of financial support to protect the state’s water resources is behind his decision to step down.
A well-known water expert with decades of experience, John D’Antonio’s departure comes as New Mexico faces serious water-related challenges. The state is locked in a legal battle with Texas before the U.S. Supreme Court over management of the Rio Grande River, and the state is grappling with a decades-long drought that has lowered reservoir levels and river flows to record lows.
A day after his resignation, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham appointed Mike Hamman, chief engineer and CEO of the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District, to take over the state role beginning Jan. 1.
In a written statement, D’Antonio said he is optimistic that his agency can limit New Mexico’s liability in the Texas case, but that he expects more senior staff members who become eligible for retirement to announce departures.
“We’ve taken the agency as far as we can, given the current agency staffing level and funding resources,” D’Antonio said.
Sunoco Ordered to Dredge Lake, Pay $4 Million Over Pipeline Spill
Sunoco Pipeline will dredge part of a contaminated lake and pay more than $4 million for spilling drilling fluids at a popular state park in Pennsylvania under a state settlement agreement.
The deal allows Sunoco to resume construction of the pipeline with a new route and a different construction method that will eliminate the use of drilling fluids.
The unit of Dallas-based Energy Transfer will dredge at least six inches of sediment from Ranger Cove, part of Marsh Creek State Park. It will also replace fish, turtle and bird habitat, restore the shoreline and reroute Mariner East 2 construction, according to the state departments of Environmental Protection and Conservation and Natural Resources, which jointly announced the settlement.
The August 2020 spill spread to some wetlands, tributaries and part of the 535-acre lake. About 33 acres of the lake were placed off limits to boating and fishing.
BNSF Fined $1.5 Million for CWA Violations
BNSF Railway Corporation agreed to pay more than $1.5 million to resolve alleged violations of the federal Clean Water Act for a 118,000-gallon oil spill that occurred when one of its freight trains derailed outside of Doon, Iowa.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said the heavy crude oil discharged into to the Rock River, Little Rock River and Burr Oak Creek.
The derailment occurred during heavy flooding in the area. The EPA said impacts from the oil spill included an evacuation order for nearby residents, elevated levels of hazardous substances within the affected site, closure of nearby drinking water wells, destruction of crops, and deaths of at least three animals.
States to Sign Voluntary Cutbacks of Colorado River Water
Water leaders for Arizona, Nevada and California have signed an agreement to voluntarily reduce Colorado River water to the lower basin states by 500,000 acre-feet — enough to supply about 750,000 households for a year — for both 2022 and 2023.
The agreement – an effort to stave off another round of mandatory cuts – also calls for the three states to contribute a total of $100 million, with federal matching funds, for water-use reduction and efficiency projects resulting in supply savings.
The signing took place in December at the Colorado River Water Users Association annual meeting in Las Vegas, amid urgency to negotiate new rules for managing the depleted river beyond 2026, when the 2007 interim guidelines expire.
San Francisco Officials Call for 10 percent Reduction of Water Use
San Francisco officials declared a water shortage in late November and began asking customers in four counties to voluntarily reduce their water use by 10 percent due to California’s lengthening drought.
Customers who don’t meet the conservation goal will see a surcharge of up to 5 percent on their bills starting April 1.
Last summer, California Gov. Gavin Newsom asked the state’s nearly 40 million residents to voluntarily reduce water use by 15 percent this year, but data released last week shows few people are doing that.
Californians reduced their water use by just 3.9 percent in September, down from 5.1 percent in August. Overall, California has reduced its water consumption by just 3.6 percent since July.
Utility Sued for $50 Million Over Fatal House Explosion
A $50 million lawsuit has been filed against Consumers Energy on behalf of a woman who died after the home next to hers exploded in Flint, Mich.
Police haven’t determined the cause of the Nov. 22 explosion, which also killed a 4-year-old girl, injured two other people and damaged or destroyed 27 homes.
Fieger Law, which filed the lawsuit eight days later, says the victims reported smelling gas on the morning of the explosion and contends utility Consumers Energy was negligent. Consumers Energy denied responsibility, saying its logs confirm
there was no notification of an issue before
the explosion.
“Our investigation shows there were no leaks or other issues relating to our natural gas system, equipment, or service outside the home,” Consumers said.
Wyoming Company to Pay $2M in Yellowstone Oil Pipeline Spill
Bridger Pipeline LLC agreed to a $2 million settlement for damages caused by a 2015 crude oil spill that fouled a section of the Yellowstone River in eastern Montana and contaminated a city’s water supply, officials said.
The spill happened after the pipeline split at a weld where it crosses beneath the Yellowstone upstream of Glendive near the North Dakota border. The river was covered with ice at the time and cleanup crews recovered less than 10 percent of the oil.
The agreement includes a restoration plan that could include habitat and recreational projects along the Yellowstone River corridor. More than $1.7 million of the settlement total will go to a state-managed fund, and the rest will reimburse the federal government for its assessment of spill damages.
Bridger Pipeline is owned by True Companies of Casper, Wyoming. The company was previously fined $1 million over the spill by the Montana Department of Environmental Quality.
Portland Taps Emergency Water Supply System
Portland, Ore., had to make temporary use of its emergency water supply system rather than the Bull Run watershed it normally relies on when after a windstorm toppled a tall evergreen tree onto a treatment plant east of the city.
The Portland Water Bureau said it began using safe-to-drink groundwater from the Columbia South Shore Well Field on Nov. 15 when bureau’s Lusted Hill facility in Gresham was damaged, the Oregonian/OregonLive reported.
The impact battered the roof and interior of the building and broke the facility’s corrosion treatment equipment, said bureau spokeswoman Jaymee Cuti. More than 660,000 people live in Portland.
Illinois Community Hopes for Federal Help with Flooding Woes
Metro East community leaders hope the federal infrastructure deal will help address decades of flooding and sewage problems, which officials in Cahokia Heights blame on years of neglected sewer, water and road systems.
An estimated $38 million of work is needed, according to the Belleville News-Democrat.
U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth said Cahokia Heights and similarly sized communities were prioritized in the infrastructure package.
“We set up a whole system where there’s money carved out specifically for smaller communities,” Duckworth said. “It’s a new tranche of money with the Bipartisan Infrastructure deal that is going to really jump-start the efforts and they’ll be well on their way to getting their problems solved.”
Cahokia Heights Mayor Curtis McCall Sr. said he expects the city will be able to apply for a share of the money in spring 2022.
Former New Orleans Mayor Landrieu to Manage Biden’s $1T plan
President Joe Biden has chosen Mitch Landrieu to supervise his $1 trillion infrastructure plan.
A former Louisiana lieutenant governor who was elected mayor of New Orleans after a frustrated period of recovery from Hurricane Katrina. Landrieu will be tasked with coordinating across federal agencies to work on roads, ports, bridges and airports, the White House said Sunday.
Landrieu, 61, became mayor of New Orleans in 2010, five years after Katrina swamped the city and as the area’s recovery stalled. He secured billions in federal funding for roads, schools parks and infrastructure, and turned New Orleans “into one of America’s great comeback stories,” the White House said in a statement.
Landrieu drew national attention as mayor by having four Jim Crow-era monuments removed from the New Orleans landscape, including statues of three Confederate icons. He launched the E Pluribus Unum Fund in 2018.
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