Utility releases list of long-range pipeline repairs on heels of
fatal San Bruno explosion
A gas pipeline that runs over the San Andreas Fault just outside
San Juan Bautista between Hwy. 156 and Crazy Horse Road was placed
on Pacific Gas and Electric’s list of 100 long range pipeline
repairs, the power company announced this week.
Utility releases list of long-range pipeline repairs on heels of fatal San Bruno explosion
A gas pipeline that runs over the San Andreas Fault just outside San Juan Bautista between Hwy. 156 and Crazy Horse Road was placed on Pacific Gas and Electric’s list of 100 long range pipeline repairs, the power company announced this week.
The report comes after the large gas line explosion in San Bruno earlier this month, which killed at least seven people and destroyed a neighborhood of houses. In response to the explosion and its investigation, PG&E has come under increased scrutiny from its customers and the government to release more information regarding other pipelines that run through the state.
PG&E is responsible for the maintenance of all its 42,141 miles of natural gas distribution pipelines and 6,438 miles of transportation pipelines, according to the company’s website. More than 200 miles of pipepines run through San Benito County. PG&E supplies its resources to nearly 15 million people throughout Northern and Central California.
According to a map released by PG&E on Monday, San Benito County has multiple pipelines that run through the area that wraps around both San Juan Bautista and Hollister and down Airline Highway. The pipelines cross through the north and east sides of Hollister.
The county has no involvement with the maintenance of the pipelines, and doesn’t know exactly how many miles of pipes run through the county, Public Works Administrator Steve Wittry said. The department rarely is in contact with PG&E regarding the pipelines.
“If there is an issue they fix it,” he said. “They are a large system that does its own maintenance.”
In Monday’s report, PG&E highlighted 100 projects or pipelines that it believes will eventually be replaced or repaired because of simple wear and tear, PG&E spokeswoman Nicole Liebelt said.
The company uses a criteria of four measurements that help determine if the pipeline has the potential to be on the list, Lieblet said. The list includes a potential for third-party damage from construction, corrosion, ground movement and the pipe’s actual design.
The top 100 list is one of the many guidelines the company uses to maintain and check it gas lines, according to its website. The tool is used mostly to help plan for future construction in the upcoming years.
The pipe that runs through San Benito County is highlighted because of its placement on top of the San Andreas Fault, a location that is high risk for ground movement.
The pipeline runs along the San Benito and Monterey county borders and lies five to six miles west of San Juan Bautista, San Juan Mayor Ed Laverone said.
The pipeline is described in two segments on the list that spans a total of 3,415 feet. The project calls for a replacement of two segments within the larger pipeline.
The segments were highlighted because of possible soil erosion because of the ground’s seismic activity, Leibelt said.
The site is in the third step out of five in completing the replacement of the pipeline, according to the document. Currently, PG&E is in the engineering phase where the company is “defining the scope of the project” and preparing for construction.
Because of the unknown nature of the projects, there is no timetable to when the pipeline would be replaced, Leibelt said.
“Each pipeline is different,” she said. “The project won’t move forward until the engineers have fully vetted the pipeline.”
There is still a possibility that the project won’t move forward and will eventually be dropped from the list because a repair could be unwarranted.
“It’s a fully living document that can change,” she said.
The two segments that PG&E plan to fix in San Benito County are listed as numbers 71 and 72 on the company’s list.
Because of the pipeline’s remote location, miles away from San Juan Bautista, the pipeline would have no effect on the city, Laverone said. Also other gas lines running through the city could be just as worrisome because of the ground’s unpredictability.
“It can happen anywhere in California because of earthquakes,” he said. “Personally, you have a better chance of getting struck by lightning.”
Laverone added that the only effect of an explosion at the site of the area of the PG&E pipeline on the city or county could be sending firefighters into the area, but the city limits should be unharmed.
PG&E, though, doesn’t expect any immediate issues with any pipelines in the area.
The list is just a guideline to future project with no definitive timetable, but if there were danger with a pipeline, the issue would be addressed immediately, Leibelt said.
“If an issue is identified as a risk to public safety we will move to fix it immediately,” she said.
