Gas disaster exposes problems with Merrimack Valley pipes
Experts call replacement timeline 'aggressive'
Mark McDonald, president of NatGas Consulting, said the plan to restore gas service by Nov. 19 to all homes and businesses across the three communities affected by the gas disaster was "unrealistic, wishful thinking."
"Weeks doesn't come into my realm of possibility," McDonald said. "It would take normally one to two years to aggressively replace that level of infrastructure."
Over-pressurization of gas lines on Sept. 13 triggered a series of explosions and fires across Lawrence, Andover and North Andover that killed an 18-year-old, injured several more and destroyed or damaged dozens of homes. The incident forced the shut-off of 8,600 gas meters in the affected area, plus the shutdown of thousands more as a precaution.
Service is being restored quickly to customers in the area that was not affected by the over-pressurization -- but restoring service in the affected zone is expected to take much longer. The pressure is on to restore gas flow, as homes grow colder by the night and businesses continue to lose money by the day.
The gas disaster exposes larger issues with the Merrimack Valley's aging utility infrastructure, an antiquated system that still includes century-old pipes prone to leaks.
Approximately 97 percent of natural gas distribution pipelines in the United States were made of plastic or steel at the end of 2017, while the remaining 3 percent was mostly older iron pipe, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.
Massachusetts is among four states — including New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania — that account for half of all cast-iron pipe in the country, according to a 2017 report from the U.S. Department of Energy.
"Massachusetts has the second-oldest leak-prone infrastructure in the nation," said Audrey Schulman of the Home Energy Efficiency Team, which tracks gas leaks and works on energy efficiency projects.
Antiquated systems can lead to several problems, Schulman said. Older pipes leak, leading to increased gas emissions. Those leaks also lead to higher costs for customers, as utility companies account for lost gas in setting rates, she said.
And old pipelines can break, which can lead to "a catastrophic problem," like an explosion. Officials have said the Merrimack Valley gas explosions were likely linked to over-pressurized gas lines, however.
The service life for a cast-iron main is about 100 years, McDonald said, meaning "a lot of this pipe should have been taken out years ago."
"The system is antiquated, it's outdated, it's dangerous," McDonald said, and until recently, "no one required (utility companies) to replace this infrastructure."
Mounting costs
There has been a ramp-up over the past decade to replace aging cast-iron pipes, including financial incentives to make the work more feasible. Across the country, regulators have pushed utilities to submit plans outlining expansive replacement of old, leak-prone equipment after a California pipeline explosion killed eight people in 2010.
In a recent Gas System Enhancement Plan filed with the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities, Columbia Gas of Massachusetts — the company that owns the pipelines implicated in last week's gas disaster — said it planned to spend $80 million in 2018 to replace between 55 and 59 miles of steel and cast-iron pipes, and 4,180 services.
Columbia Gas also estimated it would repair about 150 Level 3 gas leaks this year — those with the least severity, which utility companies are technically not required to repair but must monitor annually — with a budget for that process of $469,050, or roughly $3,000 per leak.
There were 11,902 gas leaks across the state that were repaired in 2017, and 15,829 that were not, according to data from utility filings compiled by HEET. Lawrence had 187 repaired leaks and 106 not-repaired leaks; Andover had 42 repaired leaks and 39 that went without repair; and North Andover had 17 leaks repaired and 27 that were not, according to the data.
These maps from HEET show 2017 gas leaks in Lawrence, Andover and North Andover. Points in red show leaks that have been repaired. Points in yellow indicate not-repaired leaks.
Winter is coming!
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