Regulatory
Ohio Utilities Board Signs off on FirstEnergy Rate Hike
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio regulators have rejected appeals of an earlier decision that allows FirstEnergy Corp. to impose electricity rate increases for three years. The move will give FirstEnergy an additional $204 million each year. Homeowners using an average of 750 kilowatt-hours of electricit..
Nebraska Town Warns Residents of High Nitrate Levels in Water
STEELE CITY, Neb. (AP) — Officials are warning Steele City residents about high nitrate levels in their water. The Beatrice Daily Sun reports that a sample collected from the Nebraska Public Water Supply System on Aug. 10 measured 14 milligrams per liter, above the legal limit of 10 milligrams per ..
Texas Utility May Lose Permit After Wastewater Violations
TROPHY CLUB, Texas (AP) — A north Texas utility district may lose its operating permit after receiving over 30 citations for state wastewater law violations over the last six years. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports that an administrative hearing next month will determine if the Trophy Club Muni..
Lead Detected in Water at Several Utah Schools
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Authorities say they’ve found lead in drinking water at several Utah schools, showing the need for more schools to be tested. Utah Division of Drinking Water director Marie Owens tells the Salt Lake Tribune (http://bit.ly/2wSNN63) that voluntary tests of water at 10 out ..
2nd Discharge at Niagara Falls Believed to be Rain-Related
NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (AP) — New York state officials say the latest discharge near Niagara Falls is believed to be a rain-related sewer overflow and unrelated to a release last month that turned the water below the world-famous attraction black and smelly. Department of Environmental Conservation De..
Trump Speeds Up Oil, Gas Pipeline Approval Process
With an executive order signed yesterday, President Donald Trump has set out to speed up the approval process for major infrastructure projects, including oil and gas pipelines. The central tenet of the order is the One Federal Decision policy, to replace previous legislation requiring a string of ..
Possible 2nd Niagara Falls Water Discharge Being Probed
NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (AP) — New York state officials say they’re investigating a possible wastewater discharge near Niagara Falls similar to one last month that turned the water below the world-famous attraction black and smelly. The Department of Environmental Conservation announced Tuesday evening..
Arizona Regulators OK Utility Rate Hike
PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona utility regulators elected with confirmed or suspected financial backing from the state’s largest electric utility on Tuesday approved a rate increase for the company and cuts to how much its new rooftop solar customers will be paid for excess power. The 4-1 vote by the Arizo..
North Dakota Regulators Postpone Construction Violations Hearing
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota regulators have granted a request by the developer of the Dakota Access pipeline to postpone a public hearing on whether the company violated state rules — but not without dissent. The Public Service Commission is looking into whether Energy Transfer Partners remo..
North Dakota to Get $10 Million for Pipeline Protest Costs
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — U.S. Sen. John Hoeven says North Dakota will receive $10 million from the federal government to help pay state law enforcement bills related to months of protests over the Dakota Access pipeline. The state applied to the Justice Department’s Emergency Federal Law Enforcement A..
North Carolina Agency Getting More Public Input on Pipeline
ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. (AP) — The public is getting more formal opportunities to speak up about a proposed natural gas pipeline running through eastern North Carolina. The state Department of Environmental Quality scheduled three “listening sessions” this week on the Atlantic Coast Pipeline projec..
Arizona Regulators to Ponder Rate Boost for APS
PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona utility regulators are set to consider a rate increase for the state’s largest electric company that could go into effect as soon as next month. Tuesday’s planned meeting by the Arizona Corporation Commission comes months after Arizona Public Service reached a deal with..
Water Agency Hires Firm to Evaluate Niagara Falls Discharge
NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (AP) — The public agency that was responsible for black, smelly water being discharged into water below Niagara Falls says it’s hired an engineering firm to evaluate the discharge. The Niagara Falls Water Board said in a statement released Monday that it’s retained Los Angel..
Settlement Offered to Dakota Access Developer
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota regulators offered Monday to settle state allegations that the Texas-based developer of the Dakota Access oil pipeline improperly reported the discovery of American Indian artifacts during construction. The state Public Service Commission last November proposed a ..
After 22 Water Breaks, Lawrence Learns of Installation Woes
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Lawrence officials have learned that 13 miles of pipeline was improperly installed after 22 water main breaks. The Lawrence Journal-World reports that the breaks have occurred over a three-week period. Director of Utilities Dave Wagner says repair and replacement costs from th..
$60.7 Million Approved to Upgrade New York's Water and Wastewater Systems
On Aug. 10, New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced that $60.7 million in grants, in addition to interest-free and low-cost loans, have been approved by the New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation Board of Directors to support vital drinking water and wastewater infrastructure projec..
Pennsylvania DEP Approves Utility's Source Water Protection Plan
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has approved a Source Water Protection Plan for Appalachian Utilities, Inc., which delivers drinking water to approximately 3,000 people in Avis Borough and Pine Creek Township, Clinton County. The plan, which Appalachian created with te..
Tetra Tech Awarded $113 Million Contract to Support EPA Watershed Protection Program
Tetra Tech, Inc. has been awarded a five-year, $113 million contract to provide technical support services for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Water. Under this multiple-award contract, Tetra Tech will support the EPA Office of Water’s Assessment and Watershed Protection Div..
Company: Pipeline Construction Project Was Sabotaged
CANTON (AP) – Officials from the company building twin high-pressure natural gas pipelines across northern Ohio have told federal regulators that sabotage or leaky equipment caused drilling slurry to become contaminated while cleaning up a spill near the Tuscarawas River. The Canton Repository repo..
New DIRT Report Estimates Damage to Buried Utilities Cost Society at Least $1.5 Billion in 2016
The Common Ground Alliance (CGA) today announced findings from its comprehensive 2016 Damage Information Reporting Tool (DIRT) Report. The report, which is the sum of all 2016 data submitted anonymously and voluntarily by facility operators, utility locating companies, one call centers,..
North Carolina Lawmakers Seek Answers on Money Requests, Probes
RALEIGH (AP) — Several North Carolina legislators want more information quickly from Gov. Roy Cooper to justify his request for $2.6 million to respond to releases of a little-studied chemical into a river and future water safety issues. The Republican senators also demanded in a letter to Cooper t..
B.C. Seeks To Block Trans Mountain Oil Pipeline Extension
The new government of British Columbia has announced that it stands firmly against the extension of Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain oil pipeline and will seek ways to block its construction despite a green light from the federal government, Canadian media report. The Globe and Mail quoted the provin..
Federal Judge Clears Way for Completion of Water Project
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A federal judge has cleared the way for completion of a $244 million project to bring Missouri River water to residents of northwestern North Dakota, though the state of Missouri and the Canadian province of Manitoba can appeal. U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer in Washingt..
Mexico Experts: Outdated Drain Caused July's Deadly Sinkhole
MEXICO CITY (AP) — A panel of experts in Mexico has determined that an old drainage pipe was to blame for a sinkhole on a major highway that killed two men last month when their car plunged into it. The 34-year-old drain was not replaced as suggested before an expanded highway was built on top of i..
Local Lawmakers: Probe Niagara Falls Black Water Discharge
NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (AP) — Local lawmakers are asking for a criminal investigation into the discharge of wastewater that turned the water below Niagara Falls black. The Niagara County Legislature passed resolutions Thursday night that request investigations by the New York state attorney general, t..
Trump Names ex-McConnell Aide to Lead Energy Agency for Now
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Thursday named a former aide to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell as interim leader of the commission that oversees the U.S. power grid. Trump elevated Neil Chatterjee, McConnell’s longtime energy adviser, to head the Federal Energy Regulatory Commis..
Pipeline Construction Project Gets Favorable Ruling
CLEVELAND (AP) — A federal magistrate in Akron has dealt a significant blow to efforts by some Ohio property owners to stop a high-pressure natural gas pipeline from being built. U.S. Magistrate Kathleen Burke in a written recommendation filed Monday said the U.S. District Court in northern Ohio la..
Flushable Wipes Class Action Lawsuit Dropped
INDA, the Association of Nonwoven Fabrics Industry, today announced the settlement of the class action lawsuit brought by the City of Perry, Iowa, in which the city alleged damages from flushable wipes manufactured by a number of flushable wipes producers. In dropping the lawsuit, Perry admitted tha..
Quorum Officially Established at FERC
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has sworn in Robert F. Powelson and Neil Chatterjee as commissioners, officially establishing a quorum. Powelson was sworn in today, Aug. 10, while Chatterjee was sworn in on Aug. 8. Both Powelson and Chatterjee were nominated by President Donald J. ..
Vermont Senator, Governor to Announce New Border Grants
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) – Vermont’s Democratic U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy and Republican Gov. Phil Scott plan to announce $2.25 million in development grants through the Northern Border Regional Commission. Leahy and Scott will announce the grants for 10 projects Thursday in Hardwick. ..
- PHMSA warns of heat risks in aging plastic gas distribution pipelines following deadly Pennsylvania explosion
- OSHA seeks $1.2 million fine after fatal trench collapse in Connecticut
- Phase 1 Alaska LNG pipeline advances with construction awards, pipe supply agreements
- OSHA issues 16 citations following fatal sewer confined space incident
- Gateway Tunnel construction faces shutdown next week as Trump withholds federal funding
- T-Mobile to expand fiber broadband infrastructure footprint with $4.9 billion Metronet acquisition
- First tunnel boring machines complete testing for Hudson Tunnel Project
- NWPX grows water infrastructure portfolio with Colorado precast facility
- Cityside launches $100 million fiber build in Corona, Calif.
- FiberLight to build 1,400-mile West Texas dark fiber network in $350 million expansion