City of San Carlos to Spend $250K to Investigate Pipeline

By Bay City News

The San Carlos City Council has authorized spending $250,000 to hire consultants to help investigate the safety of a PG&E gas pipeline that runs through the city.
           
In a unanimous vote at Monday night's meeting, council approved the expenditure, which will add private consultants to a team of investigators from the California Public Utilities Commission and PG&E who are examining PG&E's records related to Line 147, a 3.8-mile natural gas transmission line that runs beneath Brittan Avenue.
           
San Carlos Vice Mayor Mark Olbert said the consultants will help evaluate PG&E's pipeline records and safety test results in order to determine if Line 147 is safe and can be returned to service.
           
"We are looking for people who are experts in the area of evaluating pipeline data, pipeline safety and testing data," Olbert said.
           
San Carlos city leaders began questioning the safety of the line after receiving internal PG&E emails that showed that PG&E engineers had raised concerns in November 2012 that the pipe was thinner than indicated in PG&E records and had showed corrosion.
           
One engineer wrote, "Are we sitting on another San Bruno situation?"
           
He was referring to the gas pipeline explosion in San Bruno's Glenview neighborhood in September 2010 that killed eight people and destroyed 38 homes.
           
The CPUC last week ordered the San Carlos line to be taken out of service until a full safety investigation could be conducted.
           
PG&E has cooperated with the city and the CPUC while maintaining that Line 147 has gone through extensive testing as recently as 2011 and remains safe to operate.
           
"It is a safe pipe, and we stand by that," PG&E spokesman Jason King said today.
           
The utility will submit records pertaining to safety tests, metallurgical tests and any pertinent data that the investigating team needs to get Line 147 back in service, King said.
           
In the meantime, natural gas service in San Carlos has not been disrupted, and PG&E hopes to have the line fully back in operation by winter, he said.
           
Olbert said that the "comprehensive, in-depth review" of the stability of Line 147 should reassure the city's leaders and residents that their gas infrastructure is safe.
           
"This is a very serious issue," Olbert said. "My responsibility is to the citizens of San Carlos."

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