Regulatory
API: Natural Gas Generation Key to the Reliability of America’s Electric Power System
During yesterday’s U.S. House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy’s hearing to examine reliability in a transforming electricity industry, API Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer Marty Durbin highlighted the reliability and resilience of natural gas power generation. Key qu..
North Carolina Utility Head on Drinking Water: OK as far as he Knows
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The head of the agency providing drinking water to more than 200,000 people in and around Wilmington said Tuesday that unregulated and little-studied chemicals in the Cape Fear River aren’t a hazard — as far as he knows. Cape Fear Public Utility Authority Executive Director J..
Louisiana Department of Health: Water System is Free from Amoeba
MONROE, La. (AP) — The Louisiana Department of Health says a water system has tested negative for the presence of a brain-eating amoeba following a prior positive testing. The News-Star of Monroe reported Tuesday that the North Monroe Water System tested negative for Naegleria fowleri after testing..
Michigan Health Chief Back in Court in Flint Water Case
FLINT, Mich. (AP) — Michigan’s former head of disease control said Wednesday that an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease in the Flint area was a sensitive topic at the same time that Gov. Rick Snyder’s administration was being challenged over water quality in the poor city. Corinne Miller returned to..
Sewer, Water Projects Receive Funding in Virginia
WASHINGTON (AP) — Virginia’s U.S. senators say that more than $2.5 million will be granted to 10 projects for improving infrastructure and economic development in the state’s southwest region. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine announced the federal funding from the Appalachian Regional Commission in ..
Utilities Oppose Expanded Use of 6-GHz Spectrum Band
Expanded use of mid-band spectrum by new wireless broadband services could interfere with critical utility networks used for the reliable operation of the nation’s electricity grid, the Utilities Technology Council told the Federal Communications Commission Tuesday. The FCC is inquiring whether it ..
Ohio Town Awarded $700,000 to Address Wastewater Issues
The Ohio EPA has awarded Lore City with a nearly $700,000 zero interest loan to eliminate unsanitary wastewater conditions from failing on-site systems and bring the city into compliance with regulatory requirements and water quality standards. With the funding, Lore City plans to construct a septi..
Regulators Grant SoCalGas' NatGas Pipeline Infrastructure Program Extension
SoCalGas has received permission from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to extend the Mobilehome Park (MHP) Utility Upgrade Pilot Program through December 31, 2019. In addition to the 10 percent of mobile home park spaces approved for conversion under the initial pilot program that b..
Virginia Water Board to Take up Pipeline Permits in December
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality plans to make its recommendations in December about water quality permits needed for two natural gas pipeline projects to proceed. The department has been evaluating the permits required under the Clean Water Act for the ..
American States Water Company Wins 50-Year Contract to Provide Water, Wastewater Services at Fort Riley
American States Water Company’s contracted services subsidiary, American States Utility Services, Inc., has been awarded a 50-year contract by the U.S. government to operate, maintain, and provide construction management services for the water distribution, wastewater collection, and treatment facil..
Alabama Cracks Down on E. coli Bacteria in Rivers
MOBILE, Ala. (AP) — Alabama will crackdown on E. coli bacteria in rivers with revised standards. Wastewater treatment facilities in the state will face tighter limits from the new standards, which were approved by the Alabama Environmental Management Commission, Al.com reported. The existing five-y..
Canada’s Watchdog: Kinder Morgan Complied With Stop Order
Canada’s National Energy Board (NEB) has said that Kinder Morgan had complied with an order from last week to stop work that it was not yet authorized to perform along the planned route of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion. The Trans Mountain Expansion Project envisages the twinning of the exis..
Administrative Action Requested on Cadiz Water Infrastructure Project
Blueprint 2025 today announced it has joined the North American Building Trades Unions in a written request to the Secretaries of the U.S. Departments of the Interior and Transportation seeking action in support of the Cadiz Valley Water Conservation, Recovery & Storage Project (Cadiz Water Project)..
Governor Grateful for Help on Pipeline Costs
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum says he’s grateful that the company that built the Dakota Access pipeline has given the state $15 million to cover the costs of policing months of sometimes violent protests. Burgum says the state will use the money to pay down debt it took on dur..
North Dakota Gets $15 Million from Pipeline Developer for Protests
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — The company that built the Dakota Access Pipeline is giving North Dakota $15 million to help cover the costs of policing extensive protests of the pipeline. A spokesman for Gov. Doug Burgum told The Associated Press on Thursday that Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners has wir..
Colorado Regulators: 430 Pipelines Failed Leak Test
DENVER (AP) — Colorado regulators say about 430 oil or gas pipelines near occupied buildings failed a leak-detection test that the state ordered after a fatal explosion blamed on a gas line. The results were posted on the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission website Wednesday. It wasn’t im..
Tiny Holes, Faulty Parts to Blame for Failed Pipeline Inspections
DENVER (AP) — Colorado regulators say tiny holes or faulty parts could be the reason that about 430 oil or gas pipelines failed a leak-detection test after a fatal explosion blamed on gas seeping from a severed line. The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission said Thursday the number of pipel..
New Draft SEIS Issued for Southeast Market Pipelines Project
The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has issued a draft supplemental environmental impact statement (SEIS) for the Southeast Market Pipelines Project to address the August 22, 2017 Opinion issued by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia regarding the Commis..
Ohio Village Receives $1 Million for Sewer Project
The Ohio EPA has awarded an $1.16 million low-interest loan to the village of Manchester to improve water quality in the Ohio River by updating sewers and a pump station. As part of the project, the village plans to rehabilitate sanitary sewers and replace a pump station to reduce sewer overflows t..
Utility Seeks Higher Natural Gas Price For Montana Customers
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — A utility company is asking Montana regulators to allow it to increase prices for natural gas for more than 84,000 customers in the state. Montana-Dakota Utilities said Tuesday that the requested rate hike would increase a average residential customer’s bill by about $30 annu..
Enbridge Fails Pipeline Inspection in Canada
Canada’s National Energy Board (NEB) has issued three Inspection Officer Orders to Enbridge for failure to adhere to worker safety, pipe handling and environmental protection requirements during construction activity on the High Pine Expansion Project near Chetwynd, British Columbia. The NEB orders ..
Canadian Regulators Conduct Emergency Response Exercise for Pipeline Project
On Sept. 20, 2017, Canada’s National Energy Board (NEB) conducted a full scale emergency response exercise at Kinder Morgan’s Burnaby Terminal and at the Incident Command Post in Coquitlam, as a condition for approval of the Trans Mountain Expansion Project. As part of its Onshore Pipeline Regulati..
Commission Awards $8.6M Contract for Bonito Lake Restoration
ALAMOGORDO, N.M. (AP) — Alamogordo City Commissioners approved a contract with Smithco Construction to complete the Bonito Lake restoration project. The Alamogordo Daily News reports (http://bit.ly/2yvZHm2 ) the city approved an $8.6 million deal on Tuesday. Bonito Lake, which is used for drinking..
Maine Turns to Canada to Increase Natural Gas Supply
FALMOUTH, Maine (AP) — Maine Gov. Paul LePage says he’s exploring the idea of expanding the state’s natural gas supply with a pipeline from Canada because of stalled pipeline efforts to the south. LePage is frustrated by a lack of progress in bringing more natural gas into Maine after a Massachuset..
Maine Governor Taps Paper Mill Manager As Utility Regulator
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) – Maine Gov. Paul LePage says he’s tapping a paper mill manager as the state’s latest utility regulator. LePage, a Republican, said Wednesday he’s nominating Sappi mill manager Randall Davis as a commissioner of the state’s Public Utilities Commission. Davis will replace Carlisl..
Energy Transfer Partners Cited for More Rover Pipeline Violations in Ohio
The Ohio EPA has cited Energy Transfer Partners for spilling soap wastewater and soil/sediment into a tributary of Irish Creek, Loudon Township, Carroll County. The Notice of Violation comes less than a week after the company was granted permission by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to resu..
Michigan, Flint Ordered Into Talks on Long-Term Water Supply
DETROIT (AP) — A federal judge has ordered Michigan and Flint officials to meet again with a mediator to discuss the long-term future of the city’s water supply. Gov. Rick Snyder’s administration is suing Flint to force the City Council to approve a 30-year deal with the Great Lakes Water Authority..
14 Michigan Communities Awarded Water System Fix-Up Funds
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Fourteen Michigan communities are getting money to improve their water and sewer systems. The Michigan Economic Development Corp. says $23.2 million in grants are being distributed under a program established last year. It’s intended to boost economic growth and help low..
New York Makes $50 Million Available to Farms for Water Projects
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) New York has allotted $50 million in grant funding for water quality projects on livestock farms in the state. The money is part of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s $2.5 Billion Clean Water Infrastructure Act. It’s aimed at helping large livestock farmers make sure there’s proper management an..
Pennsylvania Families Settle with Driller over Contaminated Water
DIMOCK, Pa. (AP) — Two families have settled their lawsuit alleging that one of Pennsylvania’s biggest gas drillers contaminated their well water, six months after a federal judge threw out a multimillion-dollar jury verdict in the case. A court filing dated Sept. 21 says the lawsuit pursued by pla..
- OSHA cites Florida contractors for trench safety violations at sewer and excavation sites
- Biden-Harris administration invests $849 million in aging water infrastructure, drought resilience
- Cadiz to reuse steel from terminated Keystone XL pipeline for California groundwater project
- Texas contractor penalized by OSHA for repeated trench safety violations
- West Virginia approves $67 million for water, sewer projects