Pipelines

California American Water to Acquire Fruitridge Vista Water Company

California American Water has entered into an agreement to acquire the operating assets of the Fruitridge Vista Water Company for $20.75 million. Fruitridge Vista is a family owned Class B Water Utility in south Sacramento County and is regulated by the California Public Utilities Commission. Fruit..

Montana House Again Rejects Infrastructure Bonding Bill

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — The Montana House has voted down an $80 million infrastructure bonding bill after rejecting similar bills three times this session. However, representatives then voted Thursday to try another vote on the issue later. The House needed a supermajority of 67 votes to ap..

Last Chance for Infrastructure Bill in Montana

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — The Montana House will get one last shot at passing an $80 million infrastructure package Friday, with the Senate promising to adjourn the legislative session that afternoon with or without a bill. Gov. Steve Bullock, lawmakers and lobbyists have been scrambling to secure..

Patients Evacuated From Texas Hospital Following Water Leak

FRISCO, Texas (AP) — A suburban Dallas hospital was evacuated and dozens of patients moved to other facilities after a pipe burst and caused water to rain on the floors below. Officials in Frisco said in a statement that 78 patients at Baylor Scott & White — Centennial Hospital were moved els..

Report Touts the Benefits of PVC Pipe for Sewer, Water Projects

Sustainable Solutions Corporation has released the Life Cycle Assessment of PVC Water and Sewer Pipe and Comparative Sustainability Analysis of Pipe Materials, the first comprehensive environmental review of underground piping systems in North America. Based on a 100-year life cycle assessment metho..

Pennsylvania School District To Close Wells, Use City Water After Lead Issue

BUTLER, Pa. (AP) – A western Pennsylvania school district is scrapping water wells and opting for city-treated water so it can reopen an elementary school shuttered after high levels of lead were found in its water. The Butler School District closed Summit Elementary School in February and moved pu..

Michigan County to Get $3 Million to Fix Sinkhole

LANSING, Mich. (AP) – The state of Michigan will give Macomb County $3 million to deal with a sinkhole in suburban Detroit. The agreement struck Tuesday among legislative leaders and Gov. Rick Snyder’s administration resolves a fight between the House and Senate over whether the aid should be a loa..

Report: Pipeline Incidents Drop 10% in 2016-17 Period

API, along with the Association of Oil Pipe Lines (AOPL), released the pipeline industry’s 2017-2019 Pipeline Safety Excellence Strategic Plan and 2016 Performance Report summarizing the industry’s track record on pipeline safety and highlighting the steps pipeline operators are taking to advance sa..

Texas County Receives Funding for Water Pipeline

The Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) has approved $900,000 in financial assistance, consisting of a $70,000 note and $830,000 in loan forgiveness from the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, to Nueces County on behalf of the Cyndie Park 2 Water Supply Corporation. The financial assistance will..

Washington City to Place Water Pipeline in Service

The City of Everett, Washington will place the $64 million Tulalip Water Pipeline Project into service on April 28. The 7.5-mile-long pipeline, which will provide a 100-year water supply to Tulalip and Smith Island, runs from the city’s water transmission pipelines near the US Highway 2 bridge on t..

Maine Town to Get $5M from USDA to Make Wastewater Upgrades

NORRIDGEWOCK, Maine (AP) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture is giving the town of Norridgewock $5 million in grants and loans to make improvements to wastewater infrastructure. The money will come in the form of a loan of $2.8 million and a grant of $2.2 million. The USDA says the sewer system se..

Indiana Town Awards Sewer Contract

The City of Bloomington Utilities Service Board has awarded a $6.9 million project to Greeley & Hansen for improvements to the aging infrastructure of the South Central Interceptor Sewer, located along South Walnut Street from Davis Street to Gordon Pike. As part of the project, 12,000 feet of new s..

Indiana Town Approves Sewer Contract

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) — A $187.7 million construction contract has been approved to build the Three Rivers Overflow Reduction and Protection Tunnel in northeastern Indiana. The project is part of a long-term plan to reduce the average number of combined sewer overflows in Fort Wayne from 76 to four..

Northeastern U.S. Needs Pipelines, Report Says

The lack of pipeline infrastructure in the northeast has caused some of the highest electricity rates in the nation for families and business—and it will only get worse, according to a new report by the U.S. Chamber’s Institute for 21st Century Energy. The latest installment in the Energy Institute..

Report: Wisconsin Must Spend Billions on Water, Wastewater Infrastructure

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A new report from the American Society of Civil Engineers says Wisconsin will have $7 billion in drinking water and wastewater infrastructure needs in the next 20 years. Wisconsin Public Radio (http://bit.ly/2pZe3qZ) reported the state is already facing water problems, such as ..

Virginia Governor Signs Bill Requiring Quicker Alexandria Sewer Fix

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) – Gov. Terry McAuliffe has signed a bill that forces Alexandria to move more quickly to fix an infrastructure issue that sends millions of gallons of untreated sewage into the Potomac River. The legislation signed Friday requires the city to bring its four combined sewer overflow..

Utility to Put Sewer Biogas in Pipeline

NW Natural has agreed to work with the City of Portland to put renewable natural gas converted from the city’s largest wastewater treatment plant on its pipeline and into vehicles. In a vote yesterday, the Portland City Council authorized the construction of a RNG production facility at the Columbi..

Aqua Pennsylvania to Spend $300 Million on Infrastructure Upgrades

Aqua Pennsylvania today announced the company will make $292 million in infrastructure improvements in the state throughout 2017, after completing $234 million of similar projects in 2016. Multiple projects will take place in several areas across the state to improve customers’ water and wastewater ..

Minnesota Town Receives Funding to Fix Aging Sewer Collection System

The Minnesota Public Facilities Authority has awarded a $577,000 grant that will help the city of Cuyuna rehabilitate its sewer collection system. Cuyuna, a city of about 340 people in Crow Wing County, received the grant from the PFA’s Wastewater Infrastructure Fund. Other financial support for th..

Utility to Use Recycled Sewer Biogas in Natural Gas Pipelines

HONOLULU (AP) — Honolulu officials say they are moving forward with plans to sell biogas produced at the city’s sewage plant to Hawaii Gas Co. The gas company says it plans to spend about $5 million on equipment to clean the sewage plant’s biogas before adding it into their pipelines. It also wants..

Xylem Builds Emergency Sewer Bypass in Record Time

Xylem today announced that the company recently designed and built a major emergency sewer bypass in Memphis, Tennessee in just six days. During spring 2016, sixteen inches of rain fell on the city, half of which fell during two days. This unprecedented rainfall eroded the soil supporting a 96-inch..

EPA Administrator Visits Contaminated Site in East Chicago

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt visited the USS Lead Superfund in East Chicago, Ind., to discuss cleanup and hear directly from East Chicago residents affected by contamination in their community. Administrator Pruitt was joined by Governor Eric Holcomb, Senator Joe D..

Blocked Pipe Spilling Tainted Water over Idaho Mine Tailings

HAILEY, Idaho (AP) — A blocked or broken pipe is causing tainted water in a pond to spill over the soil cap of an old mine’s tailing pile on state-owned land in central Idaho. The water contains orange iron oxide from water seeping from the tailings pile at the Triumph Mine about 12 miles (19 kilom..

Report: 17 States Invest in Water Reuse as a Long-Term Supply Strategy

Traditional water supplies are no longer a certainty for many municipal water utilities across the U.S., sparking a wave of investment in water reuse and desalination projects exceeding $18 billion. A critical driver to their adoption are demonstrated cost declines and competitiveness with more trad..

Commissioners Question Gas Pipeline Replacement

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A disagreement about who should take on the financial burden of replacing miles of dilapidated Kansas gas pipeline is dividing three commissioners no the state’s utility regulatory agency. Shari Feist-Albrecht, Pat Apple and Jay Emler discussed at a Kansas Corporation Commission..

NARUC Creates Natural Gas Access and Expansion Task Force

The National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners have established a new Presidential Natural Gas Access and Expansion Task Force. Pennsylvania Commissioner John Coleman and Mississippi Commissioner Brandon Presley have been appointed as co-chairs, with North Dakota Commissioner Julie Fed..

Broken Sewer Line from Fontainebleau State Park Repaired

MANDELLIVE, La. (AP) – Park officials say they’ve repaired a broken sewer line that has been leaking untreated wastewater from Fontainebleau State Park into Bayou Castine near Mandeville. The New Orleans Advocate (http://bit.ly/2pceG4i ) reports the park was closed to day visitors Friday and Saturd..

Hearings Scheduled for Gas Distribution Project

BLUE ASH, Ohio (AP) – Two key hearings have been set to discuss if a proposed natural gas pipeline can be built under Cincinnati’s suburbs. The Cincinnati Enquirer reports (http://cin.ci/2ou6x8a ) a public hearing June 15 at the University of Cincinnati-Blue Ash campus will allow citizens to expres..

$32 Million Awarded for Water, Sewer Projects in New York

The New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation Board of Directors has approved more than $32 million in grants and interest-free loans for one drinking water project and six wastewater projects in Upstate New York. This funding includes nearly $5 million in grants that were awarded last sum..

Pipeline Construction Causes Atlanta Highway to Rupture

DECATUR, Ga. (AP) — Another major highway through Atlanta was partially shut down on Monday, this one after underground utility work caused the pavement to rise up, break apart and send a passing motorcyclist flying through the air. Witnesses said the motorcyclist was riding in the carpool lane whe..