Regulatory
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..
U.S., Mexico Expand Pact on Managing Overused Colorado River
DENVER (AP) — The United States and Mexico have agreed to renew and expand a far-reaching conservation agreement that governs how they manage the overused Colorado River, which supplies water to millions of people and farms in both nations. The agreement to be signed Wednesday calls for the U.S. to..
Hearing Reveals Disastrous Potential for Nation's Water Infrastructure
In testimony before the U.S. House Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment today, David St. Pierre, the Executive Director of the Chicago Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) and Vice President of the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA), urged lawmakers to facilita..
EPA Awards $14.7M for Vermont Water Infrastructure Projects
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) — The state of Vermont is getting $14.7 million from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to help finance improvements to water infrastructure projects across the state. The EPA says the funds will primarily be used to upgrade sewage plants and drinking water systems. The m..
Water Sampling Begins at Stewart International Airport
NEWBURGH, N.Y. (AP) — The process of getting rid of the toxic chemical blamed for contaminating Newburgh’s water supply has taken a step forward as Department of Defense officials have begun taking water samples in and around Stewart Air National Guard Base. Testing last year by the New York Depart..
Nebraska Utility Exec Chosen to Lead National Trade Group
COLUMBUS, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska Public Power District executive will lead a national utility trade group for the next year. NPPD’s Chief Operating Officer Tom Kent was recently chosen at the president of RMEL. The group serves the utility industry with education and networking services. The util..
North Dakota’s Bill Rises for Oil Pipeline Protest Costs
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) – North Dakota’s bill for policing protests of the Dakota Access pipeline continues to rise. The North Dakota Emergency Commission is set to borrow an additional $5 million Monday to cover law enforcement costs. That will bring the total line of credit from the state-owned ..
Pacific Connector Pipeline Application Filed
Veresen Inc. has submitted applications with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for the Jordan Cove Energy and Pacific Connector Gas Pipeline Projects, which include the construction and operation of the 7.8 million tonne per annum LNG export terminal in Coos Bay, Oregon and a related pipeline..
Ohio Sewer District Receives $150 Million to Reduce Overflows
The Ohio EPA has awarded more than $150 million in low-interest loans to the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District (NEORSD) for two projects aimed at reducing combined sewer overflows (CSOs). NEORSD will use a loan of $142,320,000 to construct a four-mile-long storage tunnel on the east side of Cl..
Ohio Communities Get $19 Million for Sewer, Water Projects
The Ohio EPA has awarded more than $19 million in funding for sewer and water construction projects across the state. The projects receiving funding include: $721,026 to the city of Wellstone to update water lines and a water treatment plant and generator. The project includes the rehabilitatio..
FCC Head: Storms Teach Lessons on Emergency Communications
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Ajit Pai has been to Texas and Florida in recent weeks to learn what lessons hurricanes Harvey and Irma have to offer about how to improve the nation’s emergency communication systems during natural disasters. Pai, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, sa..
New Drinking Water Council to Set Standards in New York
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York’s new Drinking Water Council will hold its first meeting on Long Island to consider setting maximum levels of several contaminants not regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency. Gov. Andrew Cuomo says one of the first tasks for the 12-member council will be to re..
Four Municipalities Participate in Pennsylvania Event on Stormwater Management
Stormwater management efforts by Lemoyne Borough, Lower Paxton Township, Susquehanna Township, Harrisburg’s Capital Region Water, and municipalities statewide were highlighted at a recent event in Lemoyne held by the Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). Hundreds of municipal..
Vermont Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Pipeline Under Park
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) – Vermont’s state supreme court has issued a decision that a Vermont Gas pipeline going under a public park will not impact its use. Activists who oppose the pipeline going under the Hinesburg park argued the 85-acre park was already designated for public use, so it couldn’t be..
Top Nevada Water Official Begins Key Vegas Pipeline Hearings
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Nevada’s top state water official begins hearings Monday on a crucial issue in a plan for Las Vegas to drill drinking water wells beneath arid rangeland in rural valleys just west of the Nevada-Utah state line. State Engineer Jason King in Carson City has to decide, again, if pumpi..
Enbridge Line 3 Pipeline Public Hearings Set to Start
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota kicks off public hearings this week on whether regulators should allow Enbridge Energy to replace its aging Line 3 crude oil pipeline across northern Minnesota. The replacement would have higher capacity than the existing pipeline and run along a new route in some areas..
Illinois Association for Floodplain and Stormwater Management Names Ajay Jain to Board of Directors
The Illinois Association for Floodplain and Stormwater Management (IAFSM) recently appointed HR Green’s Ajay Jain, PE, CFM, to its Board of Directors. As a member of the Board, Jain will also be chairing the Inter-Organization Committee, charged with assuring regular communication between IAFSM and ..
CEA Expands Pipeline Campaign to Focus on Minnesotans’ Access to Affordable Energy
The Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA) has released a pair of television ads in Minnesota as part of its on-going Pipelines for America campaign. The ads, which aired during Sunday night’s broadcast of the Emmy Awards, highlighted the consumer group’s expanded Minnesota effort, “Modernizing Minnesota,” ..
Ex-Water Corporation Boss Gets 8 Years for $1 Million Fraud
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — The former head of a not-for-profit corporation formed to oversee the water services for the city was sentenced on Friday to more than eight years in prison for accepting nearly $1 million in kickbacks. Linda Watkins Brashear pleaded guilty in 2015 to fraud for participating in ..
Ohio Regulators Issue Water Permit for the NEXUS Pipeline
The Ohio EPA has issued a Water Quality Certification for Enbridge’s Nexus Transmission Pipeline Project to be built in Columbiana, Stark, Summit, Wayne, Medina, Lorain, Huron, Erie, Sandusky, Wood, Lucas, Henry and Fulton counties. The 255-mile NEXUS Transmission Pipeline Project will deliver 1.5 ..
Leaders: $271B Needed for Creaky Great Lakes Water Systems
DULUTH, Minn. (AP) — State leaders say the Great Lakes region needs to drastically improve public water systems. The Great Lakes Commission this week called for upgrading wastewater treatment plants, storm water pipes and drinking water filtration systems. The commission, which represents the reg..
President Trump Nominates 4 to Serve on the Board of the Nation's Largest Public Utility
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — The White House says President Donald Trump is nominating people from four states to serve on the Tennessee Valley Authority board of directors. Trump will name Kenneth E. Allen of Kentucky and James R. Thompson III of Alabama for terms that expire in 2021. Allen is retired ..
Indiana Regulators OK Vectren's Grid Upgrade, Rate Increases
EVANSVILLE, Ind. (AP) — Indiana utility regulators have approved Vectren Corp.’s seven-year plan to upgrade its electrical grid and pass those costs onto its customers through rate increases. The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission approved the Evansville-based utility’s plan Wednesday. The grid ..
Official Charged in Flint Water Crisis Related Death Faces Hearing
FLINT, Mich. (AP) — A Michigan official blamed in the death of a Flint-area man who had Legionnaires’ disease faces a key hearing to determine whether he will stand trial for involuntary manslaughter. Nick Lyon is head of the Department of Health and Human Services. He’s accused of failing to alert..
New Fight in California Water Wars: How to Update Old System
FRESNO, Calif. (AP) — In California’s long-raging water wars, pitting north against south and farmer against city dweller, the one thing everybody agreed on Wednesday was that the outdated method of shipping water throughout the most populous state needs a serious upgrade. A group of influential Ca..
- 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