Newsline
Newsline November 2024
Honolulu Proposes Sewer Fee Increases to Improve Wastewater Infrastructure; Fort Collins to Control Floodwater With $42 Million Storm Pipe Project; Deer Creek Sanitary Tunnel Named Project of the Year by ASCE Chapter; and more!
Newsline October 2024
EarthGrid, EnerTech to invest $18 billion in underground projects; Tennessee requires $3 billion for wastewater infrastructure repairs by 2027; Clack-A-Mole TBM progresses on Oregon outfall tunnel; and more!
Newsline September 2024
Texas oil pipelines near max capacity, threatening future export limits; EPA blames state for Jackson water crisis, cites inadequate oversight; League City, Texas, advances $308 million in major water, sewer upgrades; and more!
Newsline July 2024
Nevada town to implement asset management system for 500,000 water assets; Calgary declares state of emergency over water pipeline repairs; Dominion Energy Virginia buries 2,000 miles of power lines; and more!
Newsline
Federal court denies bid to halt $10 billion transmission line; Chinese hackers infiltrating U.S. infrastructure for a decade; 80% of New Jersey residents support natural gas pipelines; Charleston Water System settles lawsuit over non-flushable wipes; and more in UI's May issue of Newsline!
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$770 million allocated for rural infrastructure projects including water, internet; Cross-border pipeline to Mexico LNG plant receives regulatory approval; CenterPoint energy sells Louisiana, Mississippi natural gas assets; and more!
Newsline
California OKs new rules for turning wastewater into drinking water; CGA’s DIRT report correlates infrastructure investment with increased excavation damage; EIA forecasts 20 Bcf/d boost for U.S. LNG export terminals with new pipelines and more in UI's January Newsline!
Newsline
The second tunnel-boring machine has broken through at the future Oak-VGH Station, signaling a new milestone for the Broadway Subway Project.
Newsline
Pacific Gas & Electric — one of the nation’s largest utilities whose equipment has sparked some of California’s deadliest wildfires — wants to bury power lines in some of its most at-risk areas to prevent destructive blazes like the 2018 Paradise fire that killed 85 people.
Newsline
(UI) — A California-based company was fined $5 million for illegally dumping wastewater in Mississippi; Three people were found dead in a Texas underground tank, with sewer gas suspected as the cause; Caltech research reveals underground fiber optic cables as effective earthquake detectors; and the latest industry developments.
Newsline
Chemical manufacturer 3M Co. will pay at least $10.3 billion to settle lawsuits over contamination of many U.S. public drinking water systems with potentially harmful compounds used in firefighting foam and a host of consumer products, the company said.
Newsline
Daniel Oefner, ENV SP, P.E., Assistant Director for Wastewater Operations at the city of Houston, was the guest speaker at the Underground Construction Technology Association’s Gulf Coast Chapter luncheon on June 7 at Maggiano’s Little Italy, Houston.
Business News
Ring-O-Matic has expanded dealer coverage in several major markets, improving product availability and machine application expertise.
Newsline: Arkansas Valley clean water pipeline project starts construction after 60-year wait
Newsline: Arkansas Valley clean water pipeline project starts construction after 60-year wait; a DOJ probe finds Alabama ignored sewer issues in impoverished communities; Pittsburgh water rates could increase nearly 60% over next 3 years; and more.
Newsline: US Judge temporarily blocks Biden’s Clean Water Rule in 24 states
Finalized in December, the Clean Water Act rule covering the waters of the United States, known as WOTUS, governs small streams, wetlands and other waterways nationwide. It repeals a Trump administration rule that was thrown out by federal courts.
Newsline: U.S. Appeals Court Reinstates Pro-Infrastructure Water Rule
A U.S. appeals court said a lower court lacked authority to remove a rule established by former President Donald Trump that limited state’s power to deny permits for pipeline projects.
Newsline: Texas Contractor Cited after Worker Killed in Trench Collapse
A Frisco, Texas-based utility contractor failed to follow required workplace safety standards when it allowed two workers to enter a trench with no protection system while repairing a sewer main line, resulting in a collapse and death of one employee, authorities concluded after an investigation. The second worker was able to escape uninjured.
Newsline: Tennessee secures $186 million loan to modernize Chattanooga wastewater infrastructure
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a $186 million Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loan to Chattanooga, Tenn., to help improve its wastewater system’s energy efficiency and resilience to extreme weather.
Newsline: US Justice Department Sues Idaho City over Water Pollution
UC's December Newsline features information about the U.S. Justice Department suing Idaho City over water pollution, Michigan receiving $500 million to rebuild its water infrastructure, federal investigations into public spending on the failing water system in Jackson, Mississippi, and more of the latest industry developments.
Newsline: $40 Million Detroit Project to Increase Capacity in Local, Regional Sewer System
UC's November Newsline features information about a $40 million Detroit project to increase capacity in local, regional sewer systems, a jury decides $10.4 Million award for Portland gas explosion trauma, aging infrastructure that led to E. Coli in Baltimore water, and more of the latest industry developments.
Newsline
Vermeer Chair Emeritus, Former CEO Bob Vermeer Dies at 78, Houston-Area Flood Officials Consider $30 Billion Tunnel Project, Primoris Services Corporation Acquires PLH Group for $470 Million, California Submits Proposal for 45-Mile Water Tunnel and more.
Newsline
U.S. Interior Earmarks $1.7 Billion Tribal Water Settlements U.S. Department of Interior announced that it will use $1.7 billion from the recently enacted federal infrastructure bill to fund 16 tribal water rights settlements. The funds are to pay for infrastructure that provides access to water t..
Newsline
San Diego Accelerates Pace of Utility Undergrounding San Diego officials have approved a plan to accelerate the relocation and burial of every residential overhead utility line in the city underground. The new deal with San Diego Gas & Electric creates a citizens’ oversight panel for undergroun..
Newsline
New Jersey Announces $1 Billion Water Infrastructure Plan New Jersey unveiled initial plans for $1 billion in federal funds for new drinking and wastewater infrastructure over the next five years. The new cash infusion is “exciting,” and amounts to a “once-in-a-generation” investment, said Depar..
Newsline
Michels Completes 15,000+ Foot HDD Crossing Michels completed a 15,426-foot horizontal directional drill (HDD) of a 24-inch pipe crossing of Lake Sakakawea on the Missouri River in North Dakota, extending the limits of trenchless construction. The crossing is part of a new pipeline being constru..
Newsline
NTSB: Crew Safety Failure Led to San Francisco Natural Gas Fire An investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined that an excavation crew from Kilford Engineering Inc. failed to follow safety procedures which led to a 2019 natural gas release and fire in San Francisco...
Excavation-Related Damages to Utilities Cost the U.S. Approximately $30 Billion in 2019
A Common Ground Alliance study on 2019 damage reporting found that an estimated 532,000 excavation-related damages to underground facilities occurred in the United States in 2019.
API Fact-Checks Presidential Debate Energy Positions
Responding with a fact-check of the presidential debate, API called for bipartisan solutions that do not force a false choice between protecting the environment and growing the U.S. economy.
Biden Calls for ‘Transition’ from Oil
Democrat Joe Biden’s remark that he would “transition” away from oil in the U.S. in favor of renewable energy drew quick attention Thursday night from President Donald Trump, who saw it as a boon to his election chances in key states.
Explosion at Thai PTT Gas Line Kills Three, Injures 28
A gas pipeline exploded in Thailand on Thursday killing three people and injuring 28.
- Lynchburg, Va., breaks ground on largest-ever Blackwater CSO tunnel project
- Federal court halts permits for 32-mile Tennessee gas pipeline project
- Cadiz to reuse steel from terminated Keystone XL pipeline for California groundwater project
- CGA’s 2023 DIRT report shows fewer utility damages, urges action on locating delays
- New York secures $665 million for water infrastructure improvements
- Wisconsin proposes new PFAS drinking water standards to align with federal rules
- Dog River pipeline replacement in Oregon improves water supply with new HDPE pipe
- Leaking wastewater systems named top source of San Diego River contamination, study finds
- New Portable Welding System From Miller
- Excavator Causes Puerto Rico Power Outage