Should Natural Gas Pipelines be Built in Northeastern PA?

By: Ethan, Tanner, Rebecca, Tara

Why Pipelines are Controversial

Lycoming County #6 (more than 20 million McF)

25000 more gathering pipelines (according to Nature Conservancy of PA)

PVR partners

Absence of Regulations

Siting not regulated until act 127 implementation (2012)

No regulation of larger Marcellus Shale pipelines

No consistent method for determining where natural gas infrastructure will be developed.

Gathering Lines in PA are subject to NO federal safety standards.

Local Cons Lack of high stress pipeline regulations

Flood plains/erosion enable pipe damage

Gathering lines in PA are not required to be odorized.

limited personal and financial resources available for aging pipeline renovation

Local Cons Rural areas already have flooding history

Marcellus Shale- accidents at gas well sites and transportation of hazardous materials

Deterioration/patchwork regulation-heavily populated areas

Lack of knowledge of elected public officials

Local Cons Difficulty of transporting UNG

Buried=forgotten

Proximity to schools, community centers, and hospitals.

Overlap of gas gathering and water pipelines

Local Cons Pose a threat to soil and water if ruptured.

soil erosion and habitat fragmentation

Forest Fragmentation

Corrosion risk-weakening of pipeline

Methane leakage- MS lines

Unregulated Lines by County

Causes of Serious Incidents

Significant Incidents

Recommendations/Alternative Solutions

More local, state, and federal involvement in higher Marcellus Shale gathering pipeline regulation.

Equal precautions paid to mid-level gathering lines as federal interstate transmission lines.

Best management practices as aligned with the PA Constitution.

Increased public involvement prior to siting of Marcellus Shale gathering and transmission lines.

Recommendations/Alternative Solutions

Establishment of safety standards above minimum required by Department of Transportation.

Establish costly penalties that encourage compliance with safety regulations.

Regulate pipeline coating and lining so as to inhibit corrosion risk.

Recommendations/Alternative Solutions

Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition System-Computer system which can detect leaks based on pressure and mass balance

Require all gas pipelines to be odorized

PA One Call “Call Before you Dig” Ensures safe completion of excavation projects

Strengthen Act 127

Natural Gas Gathering Lines

Regulatory Laws and Acts on Gathering Lines

Clean Streams Law Permits for water pollution

Dam Safety and Encroachments Act Pipelines near waterways

Laws and Acts (2)

Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program Threatened and endangered species

Gas and Hazardous Liquids Pipelines Act Pipeline regulators must register with the PA PUC (Public Utilities

Commision)

Laws and Acts (3)

PA PUC Gas Safety Section Organization of enforcement

Underground Utility Line Protection Pipelines outside of facilities must be marked

Pros of Pipeline Infrastructure

PA has been a net consumer of natural gas.

It will bring new jobs to the regions with the significant levels of pipeline construction, because of the levels of Marcellus shale coming to the region.

Impacts include habitat fragmentation that can make a habitat smaller.

Impacts on viewsheds so the pipelines can be very visible in the public areas.

Cons

Natural gas pipeline infrastructure can spread invasive weeds, which are non active plants that can be dangerous to the environment.

They can affect the property values because they are very large and take up many acres so they can be visible.

It can affect the air quality as well because of all the chemicals that are being put up into the air.

They also make a lot of noise, which can make citizens not happy and move.

Consider this

Things to consider:

Don’t increase the diameter of a pipeline,

What substances can be transported in the pipeline?

If there is trouble with the pipeline, how can it be taken care of?

There is a pipeline marker, if there was an emergency and who to contact, and what contents the pipeline has.

Types of Pipelines

Gathering system- Connect all of the wells together

Interstate Pipeline Systems- carries most of the oil that is transported.

Distribution system- transporting oil from a facility to the transmission line.

Pros of pipelines in pa

Natural gas can be transformed into liquid fuels such as synthetic gasoline and diesel, as is being done in the major gas fields of Qatar.

Marcellus Shale development is proceeding rapidly, as is the production in other deep shale gas fields across the nation, as the industry seeks to gain more gas at less cost.

Coal bed methane is easily tapped by wells because coal is found at so much lower depth than the major organic shale’s.

Cons to having pipelines in northeastern PA

Since Federal law beginning in 1978 deregulated the price, the value of gas has risen in the United States, increasing the incentive for its production, transport by pipeline, and sale.

Methane causes human asphyxiation greater than 50% in air.

The human eye cannot see escaping gas, so workers need to use infrared photography to locate the escaping gas.

Thoughts we have on the subject.

Due to the amount of research shown, also the information we have collected. We have come to the conclusion that we are indifferent towards it. We feel this way because the subject has positive and negatives that affect us in every way from the negatives and the positives.