Pipeline Construction

$32 Million Awarded for Texas Sewer, Water Projects

The Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) today approved more than $32 million in financial assistance from the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund and the Clean Water State Revolving Fund for the following pipeline construction projects: $17.03 million from the Clean Water State Revolving Fund to..

Georgia Public Service Commission OK's Dominion Energy, SCANA Merger

The Georgia Public Service Commission has unanimously approved the merger of Dominion Energy, Inc. and SCANA Corporation, becoming the first state regulatory agency to act on the proposed merger. “We greatly appreciate the prompt action by Chairman McDonald and the other commissioners i..

Judge Lifts Restraining Order Against Pipeline Protesters

UNION, W.Va. (AP) — A judge has lifted the restraining order against natural gas pipeline protesters sitting in trees in West Virginia. News outlets report Judge Robert Irons denied the injunction, reversing course less than two weeks after granting Mountain Valley Pipeline a 10-day restraining ord..

Leading California Business Associations Back Cadiz Water Project

Cadiz Inc. today announced a diverse group of leading business associations in California, including the Valley Industry Commerce Association (VICA), League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) California, Greater Los Angeles African American Chamber of Commerce, Greater Riverside Hispanic Cham..

North Carolina City Blames Baby Wipes for Sewer Spill

JACKSONVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Officials in a North Carolina city say baby wipes flushed down toilets are to blame for a spill that sent 4,000 gallons of untreated sewage into a creek. The City of Jacksonville says in a statement on social media that the spill occurred late Monday, sending sewage ..

Land Developers and Alien Pipelines

What to do When You Find Alien Pipelines on Your Property With oilfield growth, often comes economic expansion and building of commercial centers and new residential areas. Real estate developers are discovering abandoned and unknown “alien” pipelines on their properties at an increasing rate. In s..

American Water Partners with EPA to Promote Fix a Leak Week

American Water and its subsidiaries today announced a partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to promote Fix a Leak Week, which runs from March 19-25. The national campaign, part of the EPA’s WaterSense program, helps to raise awareness about small leaks and what homeowners c..

Platte River Diversion Plan Reaches Lincoln

SMITHFIELD, Neb. (AP) — The first transfer of water from one river in Nebraska to another could be just over the horizon under a proposal that finally floated its way to Lincoln. Or this historic trans-basin diversion from the Platte River to the Republican River could join the list of similar sche..

Grand Canyon Pipeline Breaks Prompt More Steps to Save Water

GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK, Ariz. (AP) — Grand Canyon National Park is implementing more stringent water use restrictions and conservation measures due to a series of breaks in the pipeline that supplies the South Rim. Park officials say the park will remain in conservation mode until water in stor..

New Pipeline Regulations Approved in Virginia

Virginia Governor Ralph Northam today approved additional powers to expand the state’s ability to protect clean water during the building of pipelines. SB698 and SB699 establish processes in state law to allow the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to issue a stop work order on all o..

ETP Mariner East Liquids Pipe Spills Fluid in Pennsylvania Again

(Reuters) – Pennsylvania environmental regulators on Friday issued another notice of violation to Energy Transfer Partners LP’s Sunoco Mariner East 2 natural gas liquids pipeline for releasing drilling fluids into a stream. The company told the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (D..

Atlantic Coast Pipeline Developer Cited for Tree-Felling Violations in Virginia

The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) today issued a Notice of Violation (NOV) to Atlantic Coast Pipeline, LLC (ACP) for failing to maintain adequate limits of disturbance during tree felling operations in violation of Virginia’s State Water Control Law. These limits forbid work wit..

Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania Files to Recover Investment in Replacing and Upgrading Aging Infrastructure

Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania, Inc., a subsidiary of NiSource Inc., filed a request today with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) to adjust its base rates for distribution service so it can continue to upgrade and replace the company’s underground natural gas distribution pipelines...

Kentucky Utility Fined $395,000 for 2014 Gas Line Rupture

The Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC) has fined Louisville Gas and Electric Co. (LG&E) $395,000 for a series of violations that led to the September 2014 rupture of a high-pressure natural gas pipeline in Goshen, Oldham County. The penalty is the largest ever assessed by the PSC in a n..

Atlantic Coast Pipeline Developers Seek More Time for Tree Clearing

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Developers of the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline say they need more time to cut down trees along the project’s route and likely won’t make the initial deadline designed to protect migrating birds and endangered or threatened bats. Dominion Energy made the request to federal r..

Maryland Natural Gas Pipeline Receives Permit

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Maryland issued a permit Friday for a proposed natural gas pipeline in western Maryland that has brought protesters to the state capital. The wetlands and waterways permit for the proposed Columbia Gas pipeline includes customized conditions specific to the project and its loc..

6 Months After Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico Pleads for Help

COROZAL, Puerto Rico (AP) — Hurricane Maria shredded the electric poles in this plantain farming town high in the mountains of central Puerto Rico, leaving tens of thousands of people without power or running water. Desperate, residents of the town’s Barrio Mana neighborhood asked federal officials ..

IoT Technology to Help Canadian City Improve Water Leak Detection

Echologics, a Mueller Technologies company, today announced it will deliver an Internet of Things (IoT) Smart City solution over Bell’s broadband wireless network for the City of Medicine Hat, Alberta. The solution will wirelessly monitor the city’s water pipeline network to help reduce water loss a..

Pipe Dream? Hong Kong Architect Proposes Low-Cost Tube Homes

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong’s notoriously expensive housing makes owning an affordable home a pipe dream for many residents. A local architect has proposed a novel idea to help alleviate that problem: building stylish micro-apartments inside giant concrete drainage pipes. James Law’s OPod Tube Hous..

Canadian Regulators OK Pipeline Abandonment Project

Canada’s National Energy Board (NEB) has approved TransCanada’s request to abandon a 266-kilometer section of the Peace River Mainline. The NEB attached 22 conditions to its approval. TransCanada initially applied to the NEB on Aug. 18, 2016 to abandon parts of the Peace River Mainline in Northwest..

FERC Reinstates Certificate for the Southeast Market Pipelines

In a split decision, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has reinstated its authorizations issued to Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company, LLC; Sabal Trail Transmission LLC; and Florida Southeast Connection LLC concerning the Southeast Market Pipelines (SMP) Project.  Those dissenting ..

5 Arrested for Protesting Maryland Gas Pipeline

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Five clean-water activists have been arrested at the Maryland State House after protesting a planned pipeline that would carry natural gas under the Potomac River and C & O Canal. They were arrested Wednesday after blocking an entrance to the Capitol. The protesters urged Gov..

Fiber Optic Sensing Association Releases Installation Considerations for Pipelines

The Fiber Optic Sensing Association (FOSA), the world’s premier trade association for distributed fiber optic sensing (DFOS), today released FOSA Installation Considerations for Pipelines, which contains guidance on the selection and positioning of fiber optic cables to maximize the benefits of DFOS..

Rover Pipeline Work Stoppage Ordered in West Virginia

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) – A company building a 713-mile-long natural gas pipeline has been ordered to halt construction after West Virginia inspectors cited 14 violations. The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports the offenses include leaving trash and construction debris partially buried on site, imprope..

Protest over Infrastructure Turns Violent in Panama's Colon

COLON, Panama (AP) — A protest over infrastructure and insecurity turned into violent clashes with police Tuesday in Panama’s second biggest city, which is home to a strategic port at the northern end of the Panama Canal. Preliminary reports from national police said four officers and one protester..

Timeline Set for Environmental Analysis of Alaska LNG Project

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The federal agency responsible for studying the environmental impact of the Alaska LNG project has released a timeline for completing its review. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission announced Tuesday that it plans to release a draft of the final Environmental Impact..

Changes to Improve Wetland and Waterway Encroachment Permit Review Times Announced in Pennsylvania

As part of a statewide effort to reduce permit backlogs, Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) today announced revisions to the instructions and forms for Chapter 105 General Permit Registrations relating to water obstructions and encroachments. These revisions will improve the..

Shuler Named PLCA's President of Associate Members

The Pipe Line Contractors Association (PLCA) today announced it has named Jared Shuler President of Associate Members. A PLCA member for the last nine years, Shuler, who previously served as the association’s senior vice president of pipeline contract services, will serve in his new role for a term..

API NY: Valley Lateral Pipeline Critical To New York’s Consumers, Workers

The New York branch of the American Petroleum Institute (API New York) today issued a statement applauding the federal district court decision to reject attempts by New York state regulators to block Millennium Pipeline’s Valley Lateral Project – a natural gas pipeline project in Orange County that ..

API: New Source Review Memorandum Offers Needed Infrastructure Permitting Clarity

The American Petroleum Institute (API) today released a statement praising the release of EPA’s memorandum on existing New Source Review (NSR) regulations. “EPA’s practical clarification to the language in the NSR regulations is a positive step that will help reduce uncertainty in the permitting pr..