Regulatory
Lawmaker Blasts Video Game Allowing Fantasy Pipeline Attacks
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Minnesota lawmaker wants to impose new restrictions on state funding of the arts after learning about a video game that lets players zap imaginary oil pipelines with lightning bolts. Elizabeth LaPensee received nearly $3,300 from Minnesota’s Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund to c..
Wisconsin Senate to Vote on Lead Pipe Replacement Loans
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Wisconsin state Senate is expected to vote on a bill that would allow a public water utility and municipalities to finance property owners’ efforts to replace lead pipes. Under the bill, public water utilities, cities, villages, towns or counties could provide grants, loans..
Judge Dismayed by Flint’s Refusal to Follow Water Order
FLINT, Mich. (AP) — A judge says the Flint City Council again has failed to come up with a long-term water source and may be pushing the troubled community toward bankruptcy. In a sweeping decision Friday, federal Judge David Lawson says the council’s proposed two-year extension with the Great Lake..
Enbridge Knew of Line 5 Damage Years Ago
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — The company that operates twin oil pipelines in a Great Lakes waterway says it knew three years ago that protective coating had been damaged but didn’t inform regulatory agencies. Enbridge Inc. says four gaps were opened in enamel coating on one section of Line 5 in Mich..
Water Pipeline to Be Built in Pennsylvania
On behalf of Governor Tom Wolf, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has announced funding for an Abandoned Mine Land (AML) project to construct a public waterline to serve 148 homes and businesses with public drinking water. “The Pine Grove Waterline Project will eliminate..
San Francisco PUC Awarded $625 Million Water Infrastructure Loan
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded a $625-million WIFIA (Water Infrastructure and Financing Innovation Act) loan to the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC). The loan, one of 12 issued nationwide, is expected to save ratepayers over $200 million. The $625-million ..
FEMA Disavows Puerto Rico Power Contract Amid Investigations
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Emergency Management Agency said Friday it had no involvement in the decision to award a $300 million contract to help restore Puerto Rico’s power grid to a tiny Montana company in Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s hometown. FEMA said in a statement that any language in ..
Water Utility’s Settlement Would Lower Bill Increases
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — A West Virginia water utility has filed a settlement with the state Public Service Commission that’d remove a $5 million proposal which upgrades infrastructure between two communities and raises bills. The Charleston Gazette-Mail reported Sunday that independent Commission ..
EPA: Michigan Should Boost Water Safety in Flint, Statewide
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — Staff and funding shortages and poor data management are preventing Michigan environmental regulators from making sure that state residents have safe drinking water, federal officials said Thursday. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said deficiencies in Michigan’s..
Pipeline Protesters Receive Jail Time
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A North Dakota man and a Rhode Island woman are the first people to be sent to jail for protesting the Dakota Access pipeline. Sixty-four-year-old Mary Redway and 27-year-old Alexander Simon were convicted Oct. 19 of misdemeanor disorderly conduct during the protests in North ..
Grant to Improve Water Quality for the Maumee River Basin
FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) — A northeastern Indiana county is receiving a $367,000 federal grant to improve the water quality for the Maumee River Basin. The Northeastern Indiana Regional Coordinating Council says Allen County will use the funds for improvements in Fort Wayne to capture nearly 500,000 g..
Minnesota Regulators Cancel Pipeline Hearings
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The state Public Utilities Commission has canceled public hearings scheduled this week in St. Cloud on Enbridge Energy’s proposal to replace its aging Line 3 crude oil pipeline across northern Minnesota. In a news release, the PUC says the city of St. Cloud advised the commis..
Michigan School’s Water Clear of Chemicals
ROCKFORD, Mich. (AP) — Drinking water tested at a western Michigan middle school has shown no signs of hazardous chemicals from a decades-old tannery waste dump site. Rockford Public Schools turned off drinking fountains at East Rockford Middle School two weeks ago as a precaution after leather and..
Database Seeks to Highlight Pipeline Infrastructure Attacks
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — An oil and gas industry group is seeking to highlight what it says is an increase in protester attacks on energy infrastructure such as oil pipelines through an online database cataloguing incidents of “eco-terrorism, sabotage, arson, vandalism and violence.” The Energy Equipm..
Trump Administration Opposes California Water Tunnel Project
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Trump administration said Wednesday that it will not support a massive water project proposed by California, the latest and most serious blow for Gov. Jerry Brown’s plan to re-engineer the state’s water system by building two giant water tunnels. “The Trump administration d..
Lawmakers Seek Probe of Puerto Rico Power Contract
WASHINGTON (AP) — Members of Congress from both parties on Tuesday called for an investigation into a $300 million contract awarded to a small company based in Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s hometown of Whitefish, Montana. The Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority awarded the contract to Whitefish ..
California Democrats Seek New Federal Probe of Water Project
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Five California Democrats in Congress asked Tuesday for a new federal review of funding for Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposed tunnel project. Their request follows a federal audit of Brown’s $16 billion proposal to re-engineer California’s complex north-south water system by building..
Illinois Attorney General Sues Gas Company Over Leak
MAHOMET, Ill. (AP) — The Illinois attorney general is suing a Chicago gas company over an underground natural-gas leak that has affected water wells near the central part of the state. The News-Gazette reports the lawsuit filed by Attorney General Lisa Madigan against Peoples Gas is based on a refe..
Flint Council Approves Short-Term Deal for Drinking Water
FLINT, Mich. (AP) — The City Council in Flint, Michigan has voted to extend a short-term contract for drinking water after requesting more time to comply with a federal judge’s order to choose a long-term water source. The council voted Monday night to approve a two-year contract with the Great Lak..
$22 Million Awarded for Water, Sewer Projects in New York's Finger Lakes Region
New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo has announced over $22 million in grants to support 21 essential drinking water and wastewater infrastructure projects in the Finger Lakes region, including upgrades and replacements for drinking water systems, filtration plants and water mains, and the constructi..
Pennsylvania DEP Fines Ohio Lab for Water Testing Violations
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) collected a $220,000 penalty from Summit Labs in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, for violations related to testing drinking water samples and failure to notify DEP and public water suppliers in cases of MCL exceedances, among others. “We rely on a..
Flint City Council Seeks More Time to Choose Water Source
FLINT, Mich. (AP) — The City Council in Flint, Michigan, is asking a federal judge for more time to choose a long-term source of drinking water in the wake of the city’s lead-tainted water crisis. The request was made in a Sunday court filing. Gov. Rick Snyder’s administration sued Flint to force t..
PSC No Longer Copied on Boil Water Advisories in Kentucky
FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Utility regulators in Kentucky say water utilities are no longer required to send copies of “boil water” advisories to the state Public Service Commission. The PSC says it will now be informed of such advisories through a daily report from the Kentucky Division of Water...
More Rover Pipeline HDD Activities Can Resume
FERC has approved Energy Transfer Partners request to resume horizontal directional drilling (HDD) activities at the following locations along the Rover Pipeline Project: Black Fork Mohican, between mileposts 95.59 and 95.97 Highway 42, between milepost 94.43 and 94.68 According to FERC’s J. ..
Rhode Island Community With Chemicals in Drinking Water to Get Update
BURRILLVILLE, R.I. (AP) — Rhode Island officials will be holding another community meeting in Burrillville, after chemicals were detected in the drinking water. The Health Department and Department of Environmental Management are set to hold a meeting Monday evening at Burrillville Middle Sch..
Arizona Supreme Court Rejects Bid to Reverse Electric Hike
PHOENIX (AP) — The Arizona Supreme Court rejected a bid by a utility regulator to reverse a monthly electric rate hike for customers of the Arizona Public Service Co. The Arizona Republic reports that the court on Monday declined to accept jurisdiction for the matter, and it did not provide reasoni..
Oklahoma Audit Says $1.7 Million in Utility Revenue Never Deposited
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma’s top auditor says the FBI and the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office are interested in a critical audit that indicates more than $1.7 million in utility revenue collected by a small southeastern Oklahoma city was never deposited. State Auditor & Inspector Gary J..
Michigan to Test Water Near Combat Center for Contamination
ALPENA, Mich. (AP) — The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality will soon begin testing about 150 residential water wells near a combat training center for possible contamination. The department and the Michigan National Guard released information at a public meeting Wednesday on the newly di..
Protesters Shut Down Pipeline Construction Project Hearing
DULUTH, Minn. (AP) — Protesters cut short a hearing in Duluth on Enbridge Energy’s proposal to replace its aging Line 3 crude oil pipeline across northern Minnesota. Wednesday’s hearing was one of several for the public to comment on whether the state Public Utilities Commission should approve the ..
Newest Member of Arizona Utility Regulator Takes Office Monday
PHOENIX (AP) — The newest member of the state commission that regulates utilities takes office Monday. A swearing-in ceremony for former state Rep. Justin Olson is scheduled before the commission holds a regular monthly meeting in its offices in Phoenix. Gov. Doug Ducey appointed Olsen to fill the..
- HDD industry faces challenges as cities push back on fiber drilling disruptions
- 2 workers killed, 1 injured while working on sewer line in Mobile, Ala.
- $5.3 billion, 516-mile pipeline to connect Texas to Arizona through New Mexico
- Tunnel boring continues under Chesapeake Bay for $3.9 billion HRBT Expansion project
- Judge approves construction for key portion of $485 million pipeline in Larimer County, Colo.
- New products: Latest industry developments
- 31 workers rescued after LA tunnel partially collapses
- Ohio Supreme Court rules sewer line location isn’t a ‘defect’ in property dispute
- Faulconer Construction begins rock blasting for water pipeline project in Charlottesville, Va.
- $5.3 billion, 516-mile pipeline to connect Texas to Arizona through New Mexico