Regulatory
Slip Lining Helps Reduce Cost, Duration of New York City Water Main Project
The New York City Departments of Design and Construction (DDC) and Environmental Protection (DEP) are currently using slip lining to improve the water distribution system near McCarren Park in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The method threads new water mains through existing underground pipes with the use ..
Rover Pipeline HDD Activities at Tuscarawas River Can Resume
FERC has approved Energy Transfer Partners’ request to resume horizontal directional drilling (HDD) activities at the Tuscarawas River in Ohio. On January 24, the commission ordered the company to suspend HDD activities at the Tuscarawas River site due to concerns about potential environmental impa..
Attorneys General Sue Trump Administration over Water Rule
NEW YORK (AP) — Eleven Democratic state attorneys general have sued President Donald Trump’s administration for holding off a government rule aimed at reducing pollution in the nation’s waterways. New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman (SHNEYE’-dur-muhn) says last week’s suspension of the 2015..
API: Natural Gas Helps Create Reliable, Resilient Electric Power System
API has released the following statement highlighting the positive impacts that natural gas offers to power generation and following testimony by nuclear energy advocates at today’s House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee hearing. “Our nation’s electric grid is as reliable as it has ever been as dat..
$32K Fine for Ex-Utilities Commissioner Lobbying Colleagues
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California’s campaign watchdog announced Monday that it is fining a former public utilities commissioner $32,500 for failing to disclose that she was lobbying her former colleagues on behalf of ride-hailing and water companies. The Fair Political Practices Commission annou..
Virginia Gov. Announces Compromise on Electric Rate Overhaul
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia’s governor is endorsing a major overhaul of electricity regulations sought by utilities in the state, despite warnings from the state’s attorney general and others that customers will end up paying more than they should. Gov. Ralph Northam issued a statement Monday say..
New Reservoir to Supply Water to North Texas
PARIS, TEXAS (AP) — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has approved Texas’ first new reservoir in 30 years with hopes of providing water to North Texas’ rapidly growing population. The Dallas Morning News reports that construction of the Lower Bois d’Arc Creek Reservoir will begin in spring, nort..
PennEast Proposal to Use Land for Gas Pipeline Rejected
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey’s attorney general rejected a proposal for use of state-controlled land for a $1.1 billion natural gas pipeline, slowing the years-long effort by the company to break ground on a project strongly opposed by environmental groups. Attorney General Gurbir Grewal said in..
Indiana House Member Among Finalists for Utility Commission
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The legislator who leads the Indiana House utility committee is among the finalists for a seat on the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission that oversees most of the state’s electricity and natural gas companies. The governor’s office says Republican Rep. David Ober of Albion is..
Will President’s Plan Fix New Orleans’ Old Water, Sewer Systems?
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — When a heavy rain hits New Orleans, residents move their cars to higher ground for fear of fast-rising street flooding. Knee-deep potholes can eat a car’s fender. When pressure drops in the city’s aging water delivery system, restaurants and cafes have to boil water to feed custom..
Virginia to Get $58M for Pipeline’s Environmental Impacts
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) – Developers of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline have agreed to spend nearly $58 million to help offset the massive infrastructure project’s environmental impact in Virginia. An agreement outlining the payments was signed several weeks ago by then-natural resources secretary Molly War..
15 Pipeline Protesters Arrested in North Carolina
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina state government police arrested 15 people who refused to leave the reception area of Gov. Roy Cooper’s office while expressing opposition to a multistate natural gas pipeline for which his administration issued a key permit last week. The demonstrators held a no..
EPA Examining Further Changes To Methane Leak Rule
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking a second look at its requirement for natural gas pipelines to repair compressor leaks as part of the methane emissions final rule the agency published in 2016. That rule – a new source performance standard (NSPS) regulating methane and volatile org..
New Jersey Regulators Reject PennEast Pipeline Application
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey’s Department of Environmental Protection says an application for a $1.1 billion pipeline to bring natural gas from northeastern Pennsylvania to the state is missing information and is rejected, for now. The DEP said Thursday in a letter to PennEast the company had no..
Judge Halts Land Acquisition for Mountain Valley Pipeline
ROANOKE, Va. (AP) — A federal judge has halted a company’s plan to take possession of various lands in Virginia for a controversial pipeline project until it can demonstrate that the landowners will be adequately compensated. The judge on Wednesday said Mountain Valley Pipeline LLC is entitled to c..
Survey: Minnesota Cities Need $5B to Fix Old Sewers
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A state survey says Minnesota communities will need almost $5 billion to fix aging sewer systems in the next 20 years. Minnesota Public Radio reports that the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency surveys communities every two years about wastewater infrastructure repair needs. The ..
Hawaii Agriculture Director Pulls Offer to Fund Farm's Water Quality Tests
HILO, Hawaii (AP) — Hawaii Department of Agriculture’s director pulled an offer to help pay for environmental quality tests near a Big Island dairy farm that’s accused of polluting gulches. Director Scott Enright told residents last March that he would use contingency funds to support follow-..
Minnesota Increasing Efforts to Recycle Water
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Minnesota is working to improve water recycling as the state’s groundwater supply shrinks. Population growth, increased irrigation and industrial uses are depleting groundwater resources in some parts of Minnesota, Minnesota Public Radio reported. “We don’t often t..
Distillers Struggle to Comply with Water Quality Regulations
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — As the whiskey industry continues to grow, Tennessee’s two largest distilleries struggled to comply with water quality regulations last year. Jack Daniels and George Dickel exceeded their limits for chlorine and other pollutants that can harm aquatic wildlife. After investig..
West Virginia Issues Stormwater Construction Permit for Atlantic Coast Pipeline
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — West Virginia’s environmental regulators have approved a construction stormwater permit for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, which would carry natural gas southeast from the center of the state. The Department of Environmental Protection says it covers stormwater discharge asso..
North Carolina OKs Water Certification for Atlantic Coast Pipeline
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A pipeline that would carry fracked natural gas from West Virginia into the Southeast cleared another regulatory hurdle Friday when North Carolina’s environmental agency issued a water quality certification. Gov. Roy Cooper’s office separately announced pipeline partners Domini..
Virginia Governor Voices "Significant Concerns" on Electric Rate Bills
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam said Thursday he has “significant concerns” about utility-backed legislation to allow electric monopolies to continue charging rates that currently produce excessive yearly profits of hundreds of millions of dollars. Northam said he wants state regul..
California Governor Defends Water Tunnel Plan
In his State of the State address, California Gov. Jerry Brown defended his plan to transport water across California through large tunnels. According to Brown, the project will help the state conserve water and protect wildlife. Earlier this month, Brown’s administration amended the proposed plan..
Ex-Emergency Manager Waives Key Hearing in Flint Water Case
FLINT, Mich. (AP) — A former state-appointed emergency manager facing charges in Flint’s lead-contaminated water crisis has waived a key hearing in the case. Gerald Ambrose appeared Thursday in Genesee County District Court and agreed to let the case proceed to Circuit Court, which would hand..
Emergency Hearing to Address Kentucky Water District Rate Increase
INEZ, Ky. (AP) — The Kentucky Public Service Commission will hold an emergency hearing to discuss proposed rate increases for a troubled Kentucky water district. WYMT-TV reports the Friday morning hearing in Frankfort will discuss the proposed 49.5 percent increase in rates for Martin County Water ..
Gas Pipeline Told to Halt Drilling Under River After Spill
CANTON, Ohio (AP) — Federal regulators have again told a company building twin natural gas pipelines across northern Ohio to stop drilling under a river because of concerns over a spill. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission says in the stoppage ordered Wednesday that it wants the builders of th..
Chicago Sues US Steel over Indiana Plant's Spills
CHICAGO (AP) — The city of Chicago is suing U.S. Steel, alleging it violated federal law with discharges of a potentially carcinogenic chemical last year from a northwest Indiana plant. The federal lawsuit filed Wednesday comes a week after the Surfrider Foundation’s Chicago chapter filed a similar..
Power Restored to 240,000 Customers in Puerto Rico
New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo today announced that the state’s utilities have restored power to nearly 240,000 customers in the San Juan, Puerto Rico metro area, roughly 80 percent of the region’s total customer base. Since November 2017, more than 450 New York utility personnel have been working t..
Plumbing Manufacturers International: Federal Drinking Water Safety Programs Must Continue
Plumbing Manufacturers International (PMI) congratulated David Ross on his appointment as the EPA assistant administrator in charge of the agency’s Office of Water, and underscored the critical importance of continuing EPA programs that assure drinking water safety and help to conserve water through..
Wisconsin Senate Passes Bill to Ease Lead Pipe Costs
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The state Senate has passed a bill designed to help Wisconsin homeowners cover the cost of replacing lead pipes. The bill passed Tuesday would allow public water utilities and local governments to provide grants, loans or both to property owners to help them replace portions of..
- Intrepid Fiber breaks ground on fiber optic network in Superior, Colo.
- Excavator collides with I-95 overpass in Henrico, Va., causing multi-vehicle crash
- Shrewsbury, Mass., expands sewer inspections and cleaning efforts
- Two workers rescued after hours trapped in Mich. trench collapse
- Trump calls for Keystone XL pipeline revival, but developer has moved on
- Illinois overhauls Peoples Gas pipeline program, mandates focus on high-risk pipes
- Ameren Illinois to invest $140 million in natural gas pipeline replacement program
- Charlottesville, Va., to begin work on 24-inch water line for Rivanna River crossing
- Mass. governor slams Trump for ‘dangerous delay’ of $50 million in lead pipe replacement funds