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Millennium Pipeline

[Taken from www.numb-in-ny.org]

From the Editor's Desk

THE MILLENNIUM PIPELINE In Everyone's Backyard?
By Renee Cho
February 2002

When we moved here from Manhattan 13 years ago, we chose Briarcliff Manor because of its cozy, small-town atmosphere and its excellent schools. It was a community that made us feel safe.

But we do not feel safe anymore. On December 19, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation's proposal to build the Millennium Pipeline, a high-pressurized gas pipeline to be constructed just 140 feet from Briarcliff's Todd Elementary School.

My own introduction to the Millennium Pipeline involved not-in-my-backyard concerns, but I have since learned that this is a much larger issue that will affect everyone in Westchester. If all goes according to its plan, the Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation of Virginia will construct the pipeline - a 420-mile gas line from Canada, which will enter Westchester County near Buchanan and end in Mt. Vernon, where the gas will be used in the gas-fired electric generating plants at Con Edison's terminal. The Westchester section of the pipeline will be 24 inches in diameter, transporting 700 million cubic feet of gas daily, pressurized to 1,000 pounds per square inch.

Where Will the Pipeline Go?

In December 1997, Columbia Gas, with three co-sponsoring companies, filed its application with FERC to build the Millennium Pipeline, so named because it will provide new supplies of natural gas in the new millennium. The original Pipeline route was planned along Con Edison's right of way through northern Westchester. Con Ed objected, however, worried about the safety of its overhead transmission lines. When the route was changed, Con Ed still wanted the pipeline further than 1,500 feet from its right of way for fear of damage to its power lines and structures. The design of the current pipeline route crosses the Hudson River from Rockland County and enters Westchester near Buchanan 1.6 miles from Indian Point, cuts through the Croton watershed, crosses Teatown Lake Reservation, runs through Pleasantville 900 feet from the Pace University campus, skirts Briarcliff's Todd Elementary School by 140 feet and Briarcliff High School by 700 feet, proceeds down county over the earthquake fault line in Ardsley, and finally passes within 20 feet of the Hamilton Elementary School in Mt. Vernon before hooking up with the Con Ed plant in Mt. Vernon.

Is the Pipeline Safe?

On its Pipeline website, Columbia Gas claims: "The natural gas pipeline industry overall has a very good safety record, and Columbia's record is as good or better than the industry average. Incidents involving pipelines are extremely rare. In more than 50 years of operation, no member of the public has suffered a fatality as the result of a Columbia pipeline incident. In fact, during the last 10 years, there have been only nine injuries from incidents involving our facilities." The two major dangers responsible for pipeline incidents, according to Columbia Gas, are people unwittingly digging around the pipeline and corrosion of the pipeline itself. And yet, accidents happen. Last year, a New Mexico pipeline exploded, killing 12 people who were within 900 feet of the blast center; 500 feet from the blast, concrete was pulverized and sand turned to glass from the intense heat. In 1994, the Edison, N.J., super-pipeline explosion flattened apartment buildings as far away as 1,500 feet from the blast. Since September 11, one would think that the possibility of terrorism would be factored into every major decision affecting our communities. But despite the fact that Westchester was still reeling in the aftermath of the World Trade Center attacks, in early October the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Millennium Pipeline was submitted for approval to FERC, making no mention of terrorism nor offering any suggestions for how to protect the pipeline from terrorism. Concerned residents fear that the Briarcliff section of the pipeline would be a tempting target for terrorists because Con Ed power lines are 700 feet from the pipeline where it is nearest the schools. An explosion there could eliminate 40 percent of the electricity that is supplied to New York City, according to members of Not in Anyone's Backyard (NAB), the Briarcliff Manor group opposing the pipeline.

The FERC Decision

In December, the four FERC members, two of whom were nominated by President Bush and two by President Clinton, voted 4-0 in favor of the pipeline. They determined that despite the pipeline's "potential impacts" in Westchester, "the far greater risk would be for us to ignore or miscalculate the growing energy requirements in this region," according to FERC staff member Michael McGeehee. A key factor was a report from the New York Public Service Commission stating that the New York metropolitan area has immediate need for 300 additional megawatts from gas-fired generators, and will continue to need 200 more megawatts each year to meet demand. FERC's approval gives Mt. Vernon officials 60 days to work out an alternative route for the Mt. Vernon section of the pipeline, but if they do not, FERC will determine the route. Karl Brack, spokesman for Columbia Gas, said that construction on the pipeline could begin as early as spring of 2003.

Why do People Object to the Pipeline?

Many Westchester residents, organizations, towns and elected officials have been protesting the pipeline all along its proposed route. Already worried about protecting the existing terrorism targets (reservoirs, power lines, and Indian Point) on a shrinking county budget, pipeline opponents fear potential explosions, destruction of the environment, and disruption of their quality of life, and they question the prudence of creating yet another potential terrorist target. At a December 1 rally against the pipeline in Mt. Vernon, Cortlandt supervisor Linda Puglisi vowed, "We are not going to let it come past Cortlandt and the nuclear plants at Indian Point."

The Teatown Lake Reservation claims the pipeline will mow down 14,000 trees in Teatown alone. Briarcliff school superintendant Dr. Fran Wills is worried about the safety of the children whose schools are so close to the pipeline route. Senator Hillary Clinton fears the pipeline will endanger the Croton watershed which supplies drinking water to over one million people. Dani Glaser, head of Not Under My Back Yard (NUMB), believes construction could disperse dioxin, a chemical carcinogen that has been found in the soil along the proposed route. Mt. Vernon City Council president Lyndon Williams has said that running the pipeline through his largely black and Hispanic community raises the issue of environmental racism.

County Executive Andy Spano objects to the pipeline for many reasons, one of which is that blasting under the Hudson River at Haverstraw Bay would destroy a "significant coastal fish and wildlife habitat" designated by the Coastal Zone Management Act. Federal laws prohibit federal agencies, such as FERC, from granting permits for projects that affect the coastline if they violate the Coastal Zone Management Plan established in 1982. The New York Department of State is reviewing the pipeline project to see if it violates this Coastal Plan, but as of this writing, no decision has been reached. Dani Glaser of NUMB argues that the pipeline should terminate at Rockland County's Bowline Power Plant in Haverstraw until a thorough analysis can be conducted of our region's energy needs and existing infrastructures. Edna Sussman, head of Federated Conservationists, a group that advocates and educates around environmental issues, is also lobbying for a regional demand analysis.

It is not clear whether Westchester residents will benefit from the Millennium Pipeline's gas, energy-wise. However, it's likely that we will all end up paying for the pipeline through higher Con Edison bills. According to Fred Zalcman from the Pace Energy Project, "Con Ed generally pays for the transportation to bring gas into its territory, which encompasses Westchester and New York City, and bills its customers for the transportation." County Executive Andy Spano has called Columbia Gas's need for the gas "speculative", and both Spano and Clinton say the company has not sufficiently demonstrated the need for it.

Where Does the Project Stand Now?

After FERC approved the pipeline, Spano issued the following statement: "Their decision defies logic. They have ignored all the evidence in front of them. And now they are telling Mt. Vernon to pick their own route, when no route is acceptable. This is big business and big government running roughshod over the people of Westchester. I am unwavering in my commitment to stop the pipeline because it is unneeded and unwanted. The war is not over yet."

Spano's office is determined to oppose the Millennium Pipeline with as many strategies as possible, both political and legal, according to his spokesperson, Susan Tolchin. Spano has also adamantly refused to grant permission to Columbia Gas to cross the county lands and parks necessary to build the pipeline.

Mount Vernon City Council president Lyndon Williams has asked FERC to subpoena Con Edison to release information about its technical needs and infrastructure to determine whether an alternative connection point can be found for the pipeline. Williams is cooperating with Columbia, but continues to work with other communities "to make sure that all of the issues get addressed, whether it is by FERC or by a court."

Columbia Gas spokesman Karl Brack has asserted that Columbia is willing to work with communities to find the "delicate balance" between producing energy and dealing with their concerns. However, two of Columbia's co-sponsoring Canadian companies which pulled out of the project last summer because of delays in the United States, have not yet rejoined the project.

As we went to press, FERC and Columbia Gas were awaiting a ruling by the New York Department of State to determine whether blasting under the Hudson River violates the Coastal Zone Management Plan. According to Congresswoman Nita Lowey, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority and the New York State Independent System Operator are currently engaged in a study of the natural gas and electricity systems in New York. The study will provide a thorough analysis of New York's natural gas needs. However, FERC chose not to await the results of this study before giving approval to the Millennium Pipeline. Individuals, groups or governments that filed for the status of "intervenors" have until January 18 to appeal FERC's decision. If FERC rehears the case and reaffirms its decision, further objections must be taken to the U.S. Court of Appeals.

To learn more:

www.millenniumpipeline.com

www.FERC.gov
To access the Millennium Pipeline case, go to Records and Information Management Systems (RIMS), then enter docket #CP-98-150.

www.fcwc.org: Log onto "Issues".
Federated Conservationists of Westchester
Edna Sussman (914) 289-0537

County Executive, Andrew Spano (914) 995-2900

www.NUMB-IN-NY.org
Not Under My Backyard (NUMB)
Dani Glaser (914) 736-1322

Not Anyone's Backyard (NAB), a Briarcliff Manor residents' group
David Kahn (914) 762-3464 or Patty Rallis (914) 923-8054 or PRSwartz@msn.com