Pipelines

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    Bloomberg Hit Piece Reveals Rover Enviro Record Better than Most

    A Bloomberg New Service article that is profoundly biased attempts to smear and denigrate the Rover Pipeline, claiming it is “wreaking environmental havoc” and that the project “has racked up more environmental violations than other major interstate natural gas pipelines built in the last two years.” There is no doubt Rover has had its problems, the most infamous being a 2 million gallon drilling mud spill in a wetland near the Tuscarawas River (see Rover Pipeline Accident Spills ~2M Gal. Drilling Mud in OH Swamp). However, in their zeal to smear Rover, the Bloomberg smarties include a chart comparing Rover with other pipelines, showing the total number of “noncompliance incidents.” Rover, far and away, has the most total number of such incidents–104 to date. However, it’s also the longest pipeline in the comparison. The longer the pipeline, the more chance there is for problems to happen. Just like the longer a new road is, the more problems there will be when building it. When you run the numbers (as MDN has, see below), you find that when you look at how many “noncompliance incidents” there are per mile of pipeline installed, Rover has a better record than most of the others! Thank you Bloomberg for helping us understand just how much BETTER Rover is than many other pipeline projects…
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    It Begins: Radical Group Demands FERC Re-Do ACP Pipeline Review

    Yesterday MDN brought you the news that the radical Sierra Club had prevailed in a federal lawsuit against a trio of pipeline projects in the southeast (see DC Court of Appeals Legislates New Law re FERC & Global Warming). The ruling by the D.C. Court of Appeals requires the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to reconsider the projects based on their potential impact on mythical man-made global warming. As we said yesterday, it won’t take long for Big Green groups to use the decision to make trouble at FERC for other projects. Indeed, it’s already begun. The Southern Environmental Law Center (radical leftist group) is calling on FERC to throw out its previous environmental assessment for the Dominion $5 billion Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP)–a project that will run from West Virginia through Virginia and into North Carolina. Southern Environmental Law Center says FERC must now weigh the impacts of the pipeline on global warming, because 80% of the natural gas flowing through it will feed clean-burning natural gas-fired electric plants in the South. Apparently the nutters would rather have dirty coal than clean natural gas for electric power generation. Or perhaps they prefer no electricity at all? Just turn off those air southern conditioners and sit in the dark and sweat. This turn of events–a blizzard of FERC challenges–was entirely predictable…
    Read More “It Begins: Radical Group Demands FERC Re-Do ACP Pipeline Review”

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    Williams Northeast Supply Enhancement Pipeline Advances in PA

    In March of this year, Williams filed a full, official application for the Northeast Supply Enhancement project (see Williams Files with FERC to Expand Transco Pipeline to NYC, NE). The new project is meant to increase pipeline capacity and flows heading into northeastern markets. In particular, Transco wants to provide more Marcellus natural gas to utility giant National Grid beginning with the 2019-2020 heating season. National Grid operates in New York City, Rhode Island and Massachusetts. There are a number of components to the project, but the key component, the heart of the project, is a new 23-mile pipeline from the shore of New Jersey into (on the bottom of) the Raritan Bay–running parallel to the existing Transco pipeline–before connecting to the Transco offshore. Much of the Raritan Bay pipeline is located in New York territorial waters. In a case of “here we go again,” the New York Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC), which has been corrupted and politicized by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, sent a notice to Williams in July (to their Transco subsidiary) to declare the application for a 401 water-crossing permit for the Northeast Supply Enhancement project is deemed “incomplete,” pending certain items (see NY DEC Tells Williams NE Supply Water Permit App is “Incomplete”). However, NY isn’t the only state involved. The project wants to build 10 miles of pipeline, build four roads and build a new compressor station (next to an existing compressor) in Pennsylvania. Even though the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) has been slow in issuing permits for drilling (see today’s story More Pushback on PA Senate Plan to Fix Slow DEP Permit Reviews), the DEP is far less dysfunctional than the NY DEC. The last Saturday the DEP published a notice in the Pennsylvania Bulletin that the agency will issue the necessary permits for the project in PA after a public comment period that ends on Sept. 18…
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    WSJ Harpoons NY Gov Cuomo for His “Blockade” of Natural Gas

    The editors at the Wall Street Journal have taken the gloves off with respect to the insane policies of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo when it comes to natural gas. Because of Cuomo’s “blockade” of natural gas, by banning fracking and by blocking natural gas pipelines from Pennsylvania into NY, Cuomo stands on the cusp of not only ruining his own state with high prices for natural gas–he’s going to ruin it for other states (like those in New England) as well. Cuomo wanted the Indian Point Nuclear plant closed–and it’s closing. He wants coal plants closed, and they have. But at the same time, the state is adding new natural-gas fired electric generating plants, like the one in Orange County. So far, Cuomo’s corrupted Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has refused to issue a permit for a pipeline to feed the plant (see NY DEC Holds Sham “Hearing” for Power Plant Pipeline). If the plant doesn’t get the pipeline, it will burn dirty oil instead. The state is building 11 new microgrids that use natural gas to generate electricity–including in the center of NY’s capitol, Albany (see NY Building Not Just One, but Eleven (!) NatGas-Fired Micogrids). And yet Cuomo continues to reject major pipeline projects to bring more gas to NY. Guess what that will do to the price of natural gas and electricity in the Empire State? And what about the price of natgas and electricity in New England? Already Northeast residents pay 29% more for natural gas and 44% more for electricity than the U.S. average. What a tragedy. Loads of natural gas waiting to serve those markets, produced in PA, WV and OH–and Cuomo refuses to let it in. The Journal takes him to task for it…
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    DC Court of Appeals Legislates New Law re FERC & Global Warming

    Yesterday the D.C. Court of Appeals ruled in a case that may have long-term, very negative consequences for the oil and gas industry related to pipeline development. The profoundly litigious (and anti-fossil fuel) radicals of the Sierra Club previously filed a lawsuit against the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) blaming FERC for not considering mythical man-made global warming as it conducted a review of three pipelines in the southeast. The Southeast Market Pipelines Project is an umbrella project for three natural gas pipelines in Alabama, Georgia, and Florida. The linchpin of the project is the Sabal Trail pipeline, which travels from Tallapoosa County in eastern Alabama, across southwestern Georgia, and down to Osceola County, Florida, just south of Orlando (nearly 500 miles). Sabal Trail will connect with two other pipelines. The first is the Hillabee Expansion, which will boost the capacity of an existing pipeline in Alabama and feed gas to Sabal Trail’s upstream end for transport to Florida. The downstream end of Sabal Trail connects to the Florida Southeast Connection, linking to a power plant in Martin County, Florida, 120 miles away. MDN has covered Sabal Trail and the Hillabee Expansion because of its potential to flow Marcellus/Utica gas all the way to Florida (see Williams Hillabee Project Goes Online, NatGas Flowing to Florida). The Sierra Club nutters said the three projects together didn’t take into consideration an increase in carbon and methane that would result from the three projects getting approved, and that said carbon and methane will contribute to (don’t laugh) global warming. The D.C. Court of Appeals agreed (copy of the decision below) and has instructed FERC to reconsider its environmental assessment of the three projects–vacating an approval of the main part of the project, the Sabal Trail pipeline. Just one teeny tiny problem (for the nutters), all three pipelines–Sabal Trail, Hillabee Expansion and Florida Southeast Connection–are up and running. While the radicals hope the three will now be shut down, that’s unlikely to happen. Frankly, it’s all a mess at this point with respect to those specific pipelines and their future. The larger consideration coming from this court decision, however, is for projects not yet FERC approved, including (according to the Sierra Club) the PennEast Pipeline, which they sincerely hope FERC will now not approve…
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    FERC Issues Rover 8 Commandments to Restart Horizontal Drilling

    Rover is a $3.7 billion, 711-mile natural gas pipeline that will run from PA, WV and eastern OH through OH into Michigan and eventually into Canada. While Phase 1A of the pipeline is essentially done and ready to begin service by the end of this month (see Rover Pipe Ready to Flow! Seeks FERC Permission for Aug 31 Start), other important parts of the pipeline are not done. If Rover wants the entire pipeline to be up and running by the end of the year, they must restart underground horizontal directional drilling (HDD) in various locations where it is now stopped. In Ohio, Rover experienced a series of mishaps, the most serious of which spilled 2 million gallons of non-toxic drilling mud in a swamp near the Tuscarawas River back in April (see Rover Pipeline Accident Spills ~2M Gal. Drilling Mud in OH Swamp). An investigation by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA) found the presence of diesel fuel in the drilling mud, which means the mud wasn’t so non-toxic after all (see OH EPA Says Diesel Fuel Found in Rover 2M Gal Drilling Mud Spill). Rover believes sabotage may have been the cause (see ET Says Accident or Anti Sabotage Caused Diesel in Rover Mud Leaks). Since April, FERC has blocked all new underground HDD for the Rover project. Rover has asked (begged, pleaded) FERC, several times, for permission to restart the HDD work–at least in a few select locations. In July FERC gave Rover an initial todo list to get back in its good graces, but still would not lift the ban on HDD (see Frustrated FERC Gives Rover Todo List, HDD Drilling Still Blocked). FERC has finally responded with a list of eight (big) things Rover must do before HDD drilling can restart. We call them FERC’s Eight Commandments…
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    Energy Transfer Sues Big Green Groups for Inciting Terrorism in ND

    It’s about time our side litigated back! Energy Transfer, the company that built the Dakota Access Pipeline, filed a lawsuit yesterday against rabid, radical “green” organizations including Greenpeace, Earth First! and others, for manufacturing and disseminating “materially false and misleading information about Energy Transfer and the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) for the purpose of fraudulently inducing donations, interfering with pipeline construction activities and damaging Energy Transfer’s critical business and financial relationships.” Because of Greenpeace and other Big Green groups, DAPL was delayed, people were hurt during protests, violent acts were committed, property was damaged and the environment that the protesters profess to love was also damaged. It was a coordinated and organized attack against Energy Transfer, so the federal lawsuit is suing using federal and state racketeering statutes. Energy Transfer says Greenpeace led an organized effort to put eco-terrorists on the ground among regular protesters. Finally! Someone willing to call out these jerks and take the fight back to them! You may wonder why we cover this story here on MDN. Energy Transfer is also building the Rover and Mariner East 2 pipeline projects here in the Marcellus/Utica region. Both projects are vigorously opposed by Big Green groups with paid protesters. This lawsuit puts other Big Green groups on notice–your days of smearing and lying and agitating are over…
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    Energy Attorneys Hint it’s ‘Lights Out’ for Constitution Pipeline

    On Monday we brought you the sad news that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has ruled against the Constitution Pipeline and their lawsuit against the Cuomo-corrupted New York Dept. of Environmental Conservation (see Court Rejects Constitution Pipe’s Case Against NY DEC; Now What?). To boil it down to its essence, the court said the DEC had the right to reject issuing stream crossing permits for the critically-needed pipeline, even though it would shut down the project. That is, individual states have the right to stop a federally-approved project. Frankly, it’s distressing. The one sliver of light is that the DEC took too long to issue their rejection–more than the one year allowed. Constitution may be able to request an approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), overruling the DEC, because the law in question provides that if a state doesn’t issue (or reject) a permit within one year of application, FERC then has the right to issue the permit. So we might still win on a technicality. That’s our hope. But we spotted analysis of this court decision by two energy attorneys–people who work for drilling-friendly law firms. Their analysis is sobering. They hint (our words) that it is likely “lights out” for the Constitution–that the project will not get built. Are they right?…
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    PA State Senator Floats Bill to Make Criminal Protesters Pay

    PA residents in Lancaster County have a keeper in freshman Senator Scott Martin. Back in May MDN reported that Martin was cooking up legislation to send the cleanup bill for illegal protests–to the protesters (see PA State Senator Introducing Law to Send Protesters Cleanup Bill). The bill is now here–Senate Bill (SB) 754 (full copy below). Sen. Martin has refined his ideas. Law and order folks (those of us who are sane, rational people) are tired of the lawless actions by a few who oppose pipelines, drilling, Trump…whatever. Sen. Martin and those in the drilling/pipeline industry fully support free speech the right of antis to make fools of themselves. It provides entertainment! What Sen. Martin and those in the industry don’t support, however, is when paid protesting thugs break the law by destroying property and blocking access to legal businesses attempting to do legal work. We saw how so-called environmentalists (who were actually anarchists) “protested” in South Dakota–leaving behind an environmental disaster that cost millions to clean up–far worse than any pipeline spill would have been. Police and first responders were deployed–at a cost of millions of dollars. South Dakota bore most of the cost. That is, taxpayers paid for it. Under Sen. Martin’s bill, if protesters break the law while protesting in PA, incidents that require police and other first responders to handle the situation, those law-breaking protesters will pay the cost of said police and first responders. WE LOVE IT! It’s about time people were actually held accountable for their illegal actions…
    Read More “PA State Senator Floats Bill to Make Criminal Protesters Pay”

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    KM Plans to Convert Tennessee Gas Pipeline to Flow M-U NGLs South

    TGP – section of pipeline to reverse & convert to NGLs (click for larger version)

    Here’s a story that wasn’t actively on our radar. It’s an old story, but is now in the news again with the recent quorum reestablished at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). In August 2013, exactly four years ago, midstream giant Kinder Morgan and competitor midstream company MarkWest Energy (now part of Marathon Petroleum) signed a joint venture agreement to repurpose a significant portion of Kinder’s Tennessee Gas Pipeline (964 miles of it) running from the Louisiana Gulf Coast to Ohio. That 964-mile portion of TGP currently flows natural gas from the Gulf northward. Kinder and MarkWest want to reverse the flow and instead flow natural gas liquids (NGL) through the pipeline from the Utica and Marcellus region south to the Gulf Coast. The project would also build a new 200-mile pipeline from TGP in Louisiana to Texas. In order to make the project happen, the first step is to ask FERC for permission to “abandon” (stop using) the 964-mile segment, called Pipeline No. 1, from Louisiana to Ohio. Which TGP did in Feb. 2015. The project progressed. Last November FERC issued a favorable environmental assessment for the project (full copy below). And then FERC lost a quorum of voting members in February of this year, stalling further progress. With a quorum now restored, antis in Kentucky, a state that seems to be allergic to any kind of pipeline for any purpose, have begun bellyaching about it. Which is what caught our attention. We’ve gathered together information we can find on this project–a potentially very important project–to move Marcellus/Utica NGLs to the Gulf Coast…
    Read More “KM Plans to Convert Tennessee Gas Pipeline to Flow M-U NGLs South”

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    Using FOIA, Antis Discover 2 Minor Infractions by Rover in WV

    Anti-fossil fuel activists attempting to stop the unstoppable Rover Pipeline are doing their best to smear and prejudice people against the project. Rover has had its share of problems. We’ve chronicled those problems–like leaking 2 million gallons of drilling mud in Ohio when performing underground horizontal directional drilling (see Rover Pipeline Accident Spills ~2M Gal. Drilling Mud in OH Swamp). The company also had problems with water filling up trenches dug for the pipeline when severe rain hit (see OEPA & Rover at Odds Over Storm Water Runoff, “Fine” Now $714K). Rover also had problems in West Virginia. The WV Dept. of Environmental Protection to stop work in two of four counties after storm water runoff/erosion issues there (see WV DEP Orders Rover to Stop Pipe Construction in 2 of 4 Counties). The stop work order was lifted after a few weeks. Antis, using the Freedom of Information Act, have “discovered” that Rover was cited for similar issues in two other counties. However, WVDEP and Rover worked it out and resolved those issues…
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    Antis Pressure Virginia DEQ to Delay or Deny Permits for 2 Pipelines

    Anti-fossil fuelers, aided and abetted by liberal local media, continues the drumbeat to pressure the Virginia Dept. of Environmental Quality to either block, or greatly slow down, approvals needed to build both the $5 billion, 594-mile Dominion Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) project and the $3.5 billion, 301-mile Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP). Both pipelines start in West Virginia. ACP crosses through Virginia and stretches into North Caroline. MVP terminates in southern Virginia. Some oppose the projects due to an insane hatred of fossil fuels (the same fossil fuels that make their existence and protest possible). Others don’t want a pipeline cutting across their favorite horse pasture. Ruins the look, ya know. There have been a blizzard of lawsuits and legal actions to try and stop both projects (see Corrosive Use of Legal System Attempts to Stop M-U Pipelines). However, antis have learned if they can pressure, coerce or otherwise threaten environmental agencies, that can be the most effective strategy of all. It has certainly worked in New York, where our Dept. of Environmental Conservation, bowing to political pressure, has (so far) blocked three urgent/critical pipeline projects. Virginia antis are hoping for a repeat there. If they can only pressure the DEQ into blocking or delaying ACP and MVP, it would give new meaning to their pathetic lives…
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    Court Rejects Constitution Pipe’s Case Against NY DEC; Now What?

    In a disappointing, but perhaps not all that unexpected decision (full copy below), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on Friday ruled against the Constitution Pipeline and their lawsuit against the Cuomo-corrupted New York Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC). The DEC dithered, for years, on a decision about whether or not to grant stream-crossing permits (Section 401 permits, a federal Clean Water Act thing) to the Constitution Pipeline, a $683 million, 124-mile pipeline from Susquehanna County, PA to Schoharie County, NY carrying Marcellus gas. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) authorized the project in 2014. Since that time the DEC delayed, and eventually denied permits for the project (see NY Gov. Cuomo Refuses to Grant Permits for Constitution Pipeline). So the Constitution (being built by Williams) sued the DEC in federal court (see Constitution Pipeline Case Goes to Court in 2 Weeks, Briefs Filed). We had hoped that the court would grant Constitution the right to commence building. But they didn’t. So now what? There are three options left for Constitution: (1) appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court, (2) file a new case with the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals (a different court), or (3) request FERC take matters into its own hands by deciding the DEC took too long (which would probably be challenged at the D.C. Circuit). The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals is a different court than the Second Circuit that just ruled. Our best guess? Williams will take option #3 and ask FERC to overrule NY DEC and grant the permit themselves…
    Read More “Court Rejects Constitution Pipe’s Case Against NY DEC; Now What?”

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    Rover Pipe Ready to Flow! Seeks FERC Permission for Aug 31 Start

    Click for larger version of Rover map

    While the Rover Pipeline remains in regulatory limbo with some of its construction, the vast majority of the pipeline as it snakes across Ohio is already done, or will be within the next few days. On Friday, Rover made an official request with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to begin flowing natural gas through Phase 1A of the pipeline by August 31st. Phase 1A is three primary areas in Ohio: (1) the Cadiz Lateral, which is 3.5 miles of 30-inch diameter natural gas pipeline in Harrison County; (2) Supply Connector Line A, which is 18.6 miles of single, 42-inch diameter natural gas pipeline from the Cadiz tie-in in Harrison County extending north to Mainline Compressor Station 1 and the interconnection with Mainline A in Carroll County; and (3) Mainline A, which is the bulk of the new pipeline through OH–190.9 miles of single, 42-inch diameter natural gas pipeline originating at the Mainline Compressor Station 1 in Carroll County and terminating at the Defiance Compressor Station in Defiance County. In addition, Rover asked that the Panhandle-Rover Interconnect be turned on a few days ahead of the 31st so the gas will be ready to flow through the new Rover pipeline. This is (a) great news, and (b) something of a miracle, given the stiff headwinds Rover has faced with the Ohio EPA and FERC over several construction problems in recent months…
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    PA Gov. Wolf’s Non-Response Response on Atlantic Sunrise Delays

    Over the past year or more MDN editor Jim Willis has signed numerous petitions supporting the Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline project–but it wasn’t until he signed one at a recent Williams event that the got a response from Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf. Atlantic Sunrise is a $3 billion, 198-mile natural gas pipeline project, most of which will get built in northeast Pennsylvania. The project is ready to begin construction, NOW, but still needs a few permits from the state Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP). In an attempt to get the DEP (and Gov. Wolf) moving, Williams co-hosted an event in July to pressure the DEP and Wolf into granting final permits (see Atlantic Sunrise Pipe Rally: ‘Time to Kick Politicians in the Ass’). As guests entered the event, held at the Shadowbrook Golf Course in Wyoming County, PA, they were asked to sign a petition supporting the project. The petitions were delivered to Gov. Wolf and the DEP. Perhaps signing a paper petition, instead of an online/electronic petition, did the trick. MDN received a form letter email response from Gov. Wolf (below). In his response, Gov. Wolf says he supports pipeline development, but that he also supports “strong regulations” to protect people’s health, water, air, blah-biddy blah blah. It is a masterful example of saying nothing at all, while trying to appear you’re saying something. Here’s what we “heard” in Wolf’s response: Screw you–the project will get approved when it gets approved and I don’t care when that is”…
    Read More “PA Gov. Wolf’s Non-Response Response on Atlantic Sunrise Delays”

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    New Group Aims to Counteract Big Green’s Paid Protesters

    The Energy Equipment and Infrastructure Alliance (EEIA) announced last week they have launched “Energy Builders,” a new community-based coalition of workers, families and businesses dedicated to educating friends, neighbors and elected officials about the importance and benefits of energy infrastructure and its ongoing development. Energy Builders came together in reaction to paid Big Green protesters being dropped into local communities spreading fear, misinformation and untruths about new energy delivery projects. Americans deserve the best, safest, most modern and secure energy delivery systems in our communities. Energy Builders promotes that. America is enjoying an energy revolution, where innovation and new discoveries of clean and affordable fuels like natural gas are cutting consumer prices, utility bills, and air pollution. We need to modernize and expand our energy infrastructure and delivery systems to ensure that all families, workers and businesses get their fair share of the rewards. We say, it’s about time to fight back against the paid protesters with a radical (WAY outside the mainstream) agenda…
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