Pipeline--

Didn't want To hy-jack the post below about the pipeline so here goes-We have two lines through our farm-a 18 inch put in, in 1978 and a 42 inch put in, in 1999. When the one was put in in 99 the wife and I would take the 3-wheeler out every day to check the progress and she would take pictures. The first line we were part of association to fight the line but no avail. The second line "went through". We have a lot of pictures and will post more next week but I just want to say I have never met a more courteous safety minded group of people than the pipeline people-before the line went through-during construction and now. We have a Mom and Pop tiling business and we use 811 one call before we go near the line-common sense-When we one call they come out and if we are ANYWHERE near the line they mark it and stay with us until we are done. If we have to cross the line we can't use the plow-we have to back-hoe across it. The guy will jump right down in the hole with his sensor and probe and make sure we ALL know where it is at. Nice guys-we are on first name basis! Here are a few pictures of when the line went through our farm to show how close it is to our house! We live in a valley and if there is a leak we will be the first to. If I get up in the middle of the night to take a leak and flick the light switch on and if there is a leak--BOOM. They don't put the scent in the gas until it branches to towns so there is no smell. More next week for we are getting ready to go tractor pulling in Oklahoma this week.---Tee

We have one the river bottoms and we are not allowed to cross it except at the road. When the 2008 flood hit dirt was washed away from the pipeline in places and you could see where the ripper scraped the pipe. The pipe is floating up and only a few feet of dirt over it.

I am trying to remember where you are at.

Is that the Northern Borders, Northern Natural Gas, Corn Belt or other?

There are 4 big lines going through our area a 48",36",and 2-24"s all in the same right of way,,and yes there have been some issues, but all in all they are safe..

(quoted from post at 10:23:51 01/22/19) We have one the river bottoms and we are not allowed to cross it except at the road. When the 2008 flood hit dirt was washed away from the pipeline in places and you could see where the ripper scraped the pipe. The pipe is floating up and only a few feet of dirt over it.

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Did you not report it???

They have changed hands over the years--I think the small one is Kinder-Morgan and the big one is Alliance---Tee

Wow-ripper tracks on the pipeline-I would have crapped my pants if I saw that. The old line is 3/8"s thick and the newer one is 5/8's in the field and 3/4 when it goes under the road---Tee------------Hey-shouldn't you be working-aren't you on company time-Can I have your bosses phone no.?

The pipeline people are nice, they do want a good relationship with property owners. Just make sure you respect their right-of-way.

There is two natural gas pipelines that run through my property. A 22" that was put in back in 1949, and a 36" that was put in back in 1960. These are high pressure transmission lines that run through a wetland. Back in the day, wetlands where thought of as cheap, unusable waste lands. That's all changed today, as we understand how valuable these wetlands really are to our environment. It is now cheaper for a pipeline company to avoid a wetland right-of-way than build through it. Lots of regulations and permits are now needed to enter or disturb a wetland.

That ripper may have compromised the integrity of that pipe! You're right about the pipeline actually floating to the top. Over time with wind/water erosion, they really can be only a few feet or sometimes inches below the surface. Pipeline right-of-ways can become very dangerous if disturbed.

It was not my field, the owner told me to go look at it. I sure am at work! Hey I an union and get breaks! lol I did go see a sweet 2 stroke last week...wish I could give you details but its still in development stages. O I am the boss!

A few years back I was taking a bushing out of a 3" flange on a plug valve so I could run a larger line to feed the 95Liter engine. I took a 3' pipe wrench and pulled on the bushing and the valve and about 2' of pipe shoot up out of the ground with the pipe spewing natural gas. I ran to shut it off but the main was outside the fence so I had to run around the plant, go thru security to get outside to find it had a lock on it! back inside,thru security to grab bolt cutters and cheater pipe, back to security who would not let me out without a pass for the tools! had to call my boss to ok that! Got it shut off to find that the pipe was connected underground with a no hub type connecter!( the rubber boot with hose clamps)

Most pipeline people are nice and most landowners are fairly easy to get along with. I have worked a lot of pipeline encroachments thur the years and everything always went better when everyone had a good attitude.

If i remember correctly a pipeline has to be odorize when 75% of that pipeline is in class III area (house count, 46 houses per mile, 660' each side of pipeline).

I?ve been employed 39 years and 5 months now with a large gas company, our entire 800 miles of transmission lines are leak surveyed annually and some locations depending on the classification gets surveyed two to three times annually.

I commenced my career in 1971 with a Company who had constructed,owned,operated and maintained approximately 1,200 miles of 30", 1,200 miles 36" Natural Gas transportation Pipelines as well as thousands of miles of pipelines to transport non processed Natural Gas to several processing plants.
The first infrastructure (30" Pipeline) of the above Pipeline,started to move Natural Gas in October 1957 in Western Canada between the Rocky Mtns, and the interior plateau.
Safety Regulations as to the SAFE operation of these pipelines and Infrastructure is and or was under the control of the "Canadian Nation Transportation Safety Board".

My career seen me starting with a Mop and bucket. As time marched on, I continued with never ending studies,examinations and eventually was a Power Engineer responsible for the SAFE,RELIABLE,and COST EFFECTIVE day to operations of much of the above pipeline. The last 25 years of my career was principally responsible for a fleet of Gas Generator Turbines,and other related equipment on the Southern portion of the above mentioned pipeline...approximately the span of 350 miles.
I can assure you the pipeline is so stringently watched by Canadian Federal Regulations,Provincial Regulations pulse in house operating procedures that all and any possible PIPELINE FAILURES are reduced to almost 0 % on the pipelines that transporter Processed natural gas (Methane, CH4, ).

With the above statement,in my 40 year career, I was part of three pipeline Breaches / Failures (30" and or 36" processed Gas Pipelines).
EACH time the investigation uncovered an act of GOD/ Shifting of the Earths layers causing pipe to fail.
Canadian Legislation, reads such that all 30" and 36" pipes as well as other size pipelines that transport Processed Natural Gas (Methane, CH4,) MUST have an INTERNAL NON DESTRUCTIVE TOOL placed inside said pipelines, and all internal surface shall be checked for any abnormalities!
Tooling is placed inside these pipelines, at set operating time frames to locate any DEGRADATION of these pipelines no matter what the causes are!

Tooling is known as a PIG...or PIGGING TOOL. Tool is pushed along the interior length of these pipes, with the flow of the natural Gas moving at a very controlled speed.
All findings are handed to the Canadian Transportation Safety Board!

Over the 40 year span of my Career, Unfortunately,I have to believe that individual whom are to busy to READ all facts, attend meetings and LISTEN to learn about natural Gas Pipelines are setting them selves up for Fasle information. Methane, CH4, is a colorless, odorless, flammable gas that burns with a faintly blue flame. "Natural gas," used by many North Americans for heating and cooking, is primarily methane (>90%). The 'gas odor' is from an added substance so that gas leaks can be detected.

What is the minimum depth of a pipe line across farm land?

The last line was guaranteed 5 ft. When we tile it is at least that.---Tee

They "fly" the pipeline every Tuesday at about 200 ft. checking for everything. We had one called the job and were done working near the line and the pipeline people had left when the plane went over-the pilot did an about face and circled for about 10 minutes and away he went. He must have called us in and they must have told him we were alright. We just waved at him and kept on tiling. The pipeline people have fixed the old line more than once. When they run the pig through it must have detected thin spots so the put these huge sleeve clamp assemblies around the pipe. Rumor is they have reduced the pressure in the pipe because of that.---Tee

Doesn't P.H.M.S.A only require that P.I.G. once every seven years to flow through? I think most pipeline companies use it more often though....

I have 2 lines across my property and both have been here for over 40 years. Pipeline safety IS a big deal and the maintaining companies take it seriously.

On the PIG, they use them here too on smaller lines, like my 13 and 18" as I recall. You have solved my question as to how they are propelled but I am curious as to what kind of equipment is used to "look" at the pipe and how do you get that information to someone to scan it, especially curious as to how the location of the defect is obtained?

Years ago there is a low place close to my farm that must have had a problem detected by a PIG as one day a bunch of equipment came out and they replaced a couple of sections. Quite a process.

(quoted from post at 06:02:25 01/23/19) I have 2 lines across my property and both have been here for over 40 years. Pipeline safety IS a big deal and the maintaining companies take it seriously.

On the PIG, they use them here too on smaller lines, like my 13 and 18" as I recall. You have solved my question as to how they are propelled but I am curious as to what kind of equipment is used to "look" at the pipe and how do you get that information to someone to scan it, especially curious as to how the location of the defect is obtained?

Years ago there is a low place close to my farm that must have had a problem detected by a PIG as one day a bunch of equipment came out and they replaced a couple of sections. Quite a process.

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Mark, it seems that the companies maintaining lines that transport petroleum liquid products from crude oil to the finished product are in fact very careful about how those lines. Here in the US though natural gas lines seem to be the problem. Seems that even the gas companies are admitting that the infrastructure for NG is dismal and some lines are over 100 years old. Lot of that stuff was put in so long ago that they are not even sure where the lines are.

Heck they laid NG line into a town near me a couple of years ago. It appeared that it was about a 6 or 8 inch line and it was flexible. The problem is that it's only in about 4'. We can get frost several feet below that so the line is subject to frost heave. In a 16 mile run they have had to dig that line up and repair it several times. And it's not even 5 years old yet. I'm sure they only put it in about 4 feet because they used a cable plow pulled by a crawler. Much faster and cheaper than digging it in.

Rick

There's a natural gas/diesel pipe line on the backside of my property that was put there in 1933. I only remember it leaking one time when I was about 60 yrs younger. Airplane inspection is performed regularly & tall grass/weeds/brush isn't allowed to grow on pipeline right-away.

Thank you, finally someone who knows what they are talking about.

When you mention,"SAFE,RELIABLE,and COST EFFECTIVE day to operations of much of the above pipeline" are you talking about the one I posted about, Enbridge?

I seen in the news reports, they are saying it is a 30" line that was layed in 1952 or 1953. Also the last time it had a pig ran thru it was 2012....not the exact words they used in the report but what I took it to mean.

What did I say that wasn't true?---Tee

We have flyovers on the line too as do the overland high voltage steel towers. Lines are marked with clearly visible plackards and name and phone
number to call in case of an emergency or problem. Also we get leaflets in the mail maybe semiannually labeled: Pipeline Safety.