State Hearing to Focus on Increasing Funding for CA Public Utilities Commission

The California Public Utilities Commission is seeking to add seven new positions to its gas safety division  A state assemblyman will be leading a hearing today to talk about possibly beefing up state regulators’ ability to oversee pipeline safety in the wake of the 2010 San Bruno pipeline explosion. Assemblyman Rich Gordon, D-Menlo Park, who [...]

Waterville council considers $80 million natural gas line

Officials proposing to build an $80 million natural gas pipeline through central Maine got both support and questions at a City Council meeting earlier this week. Mark Isaacson and Anthony Buxton, partners in Kennebec Valley Gas Co., are seeking a tax increment financing agreement with Waterville and 11 other communities on the proposed line, which [...]

PG&E to replace 1,200 miles of plastic gas pipe

Pacific Gas and Electric Co. will undertake a multiyear effort to remove more than 1,200 miles of plastic pipeline that has been linked to numerous failures nationwide, including two explosions in Northern California in the past six weeks. The company’s decision to replace the pre-1973 pipe, marks a departure from a policy that PG&E had [...]

NJ Reservoir Drainage May Affect Local Drinking Water

Officials say water may look, smell differently, but is still safe to drink while the Cedar Grove Reservoir is drained. While the Cedar Grove Reservoir is drained, workers will go in and repair corrosion damage, inspect its conduits and fix leakage. The process of draining the reservoir, which is located along Ridge Road, is expected [...]

Zinc Ribbon or Copper for AC Mitigation – that is the question…

Team members of MATCOR have been involved in several online discussions (LinkedIn) about the pros and cons of Zinc Ribbon for use in AC Mitigation. So we thought we would share our expertise in this subject on our blog. Below are 4 reasons why we believe Copper (and our AC Mitigation product, “The Mitigator“) is [...]

Corrosion at root of water line failure

Amarillo — A tiny crack led to a big blowout of the pipeline carrying half the city’s water supply. About 2 million gallons of water started gushing up to 50 feet in the air because the Carson County Wellfield transmission pipeline had corroded from the outside in. “It was real obvious when we cut into [...]

PG&E Proposes Spending $769M To Test Gas Pipelines, $2.2B Overall

PG&E Corp. (PCG) on Friday proposed spending $769 million over three years to test its natural gas pipelines as part of a $2.2 billion pipeline safety program, following a deadly pipeline explosion last year. PG&E said it will pressure-test all of its untested pipe segments and expand use of automated pipeline shut-off valves. The utility [...]

‘Aggressive’ corrosion eats at power-plant scrubbers

When American Electric Power installed a pollution scrubber at its Cardinal plant along the Ohio River in 2007, it was supposed to last 25 years. About a year later, an inspection found that something was eating through its steel walls. “There were some areas in the tank vessel itself that ultimately corroded all the way [...]

Mike Feuer Calls Upon Public Utilities Commission to Provide Gas Pipeline Safety Information

Feuer Requests Answers to Concerns Raised by Investigation of San Bruno Pipeline Rupture. Assembly Member Mike Feuer (D-Los Angeles) has asked the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to provide information about the safety of gas pipelines in Feuer’s district after a devastating explosion in San Bruno, California raised questions about the safety of aging pipeline [...]

Illinois American Water continues its pipeline replacement program – Aging Infrastructure

The barricades are coming down on Illinois 159 at the Swansea-Belleville  border as Illinois American Water completes the first phase of its $1.6 million water  main replacement and corrosion project. About  700 feet of 8-inch water main dating from 1958 was replaced at a cost of about $325,000. The replacement program focuses on replacing mains where leaks [...]