Allentown, UGI differ over whether pace of gas pipeline replacement is enough

The gas pipe that leaked and is believed to have caused a massive gas explosion in Allentown nearly one year ago was first installed in 1928. Eighty-three years old at the time, the pipe was slightly below the average age of the cast-iron pipelines running through the city. Out of about 72 miles of cast-iron pipe in Allentown, [...]

Pennsylvania Public Utility posts new rules for replacing aging pipelines

Noting the Feb. 9 natural gas explosion that killed five Allentown residents, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission last week proposed requiring gas utilities to file plans outlining how much aging underground pipelines leak and when the utilities intend to replace them. The PUC unanimously agreed without discussion to seek comments on the proposal, which was [...]

Valley residents want old pipelines out

Poll shows most customers willing to pay more to replace aging pipes. Lehigh Valley residents think the state should push utilities to get aging natural gas lines out of the ground, and they’re willing to help shoulder the cost. A new Morning Call-Muhlenberg College Quality of Life poll shows that more than 80 percent of [...]

Senate pipeline safety bill includes some measures sought by watchdogs

As the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation takes up pipeline safety legislation today, watchdog groups say that the measure contains good elements to address recent pipeline disasters — such as the San Bruno, Calif., gas explosion and the Marshall, Mich., oil spill –but could still use some improvement. The Pipeline Transportation Safety Improvement Act [...]

Citizens Energy Group pipelines pass internal review mandated by feds

Citizens Energy Group said its gas pipelines have passed an internal review that federal regulators required of pipeline owners nationwide after a spectacular gas main explosion in Allentown, Pa., in February that killed five people. The National Transportation Safety Board had asked pipeline operators to take another look at inspection reports for potential problems such [...]

Danger underground: Aging natural gas lines a concern

More than 120 miles of cast-iron natural gas lines still lie beneath streets and byways in Northeast Pennsylvania, an aging infrastructure UGI Utilities Inc. says it is already aggressively replacing amid growing pressure on utilities nationwide to step up the pace. With the investigation into a deadly gas explosion two months ago in Allentown squarely [...]

Feds call on industry to repair aging pipelines

  ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Federal transportation officials demanded Monday that pipeline companies speed up efforts to repair and replace aging oil and gas lines, saying recent deadly explosions in Pennsylvania and California highlight the urgent need for safety improvements. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced plans to strengthen oversight of companies that operate a 2.5 million-mile [...]

Residents Weigh In on Pipeline Safety Campaign

The Transportation Secretary unveiled a new pipeline safety campaign on Monday. This comes after a series of incidents across the country. The most recent pipeline explosion killed five people in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Pipeline explosions are something residents in Appomattox County know all too well. In 2008  corrosion caused a gas pipeline to rupture and explode in Appomattox [...]

U.S. DOT head to talk pipeline safety in Allentown

Secretary Ray LaHood will visit Monday to speak about the Obama administration’s commitment to pipeline safety. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood will visit Allentown on Monday to tour the site of the Feb. 9 natural gas explosion that killed five people and put a spotlight on the city’s aging pipeline infrastructure and the slow and [...]

Latest Pennsylvania Business

PIPELINE SAFETY Federal hearing in Pa. addresses gas pipelines KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa. (AP) A utility executive says it’s possible a leak in a natural gas pipeline developed after an inspection that took place one day before an explosion that killed five people in Allentown last month. At a hearing on pipeline safety in King [...]