Pipeline Meeting In Upper Makefield Rescheduled By Forecast

UPPER MAKEFIELD, PA — A meeting scheduled for Tuesday night to discuss leakage from the Sunoco pipeline running through part of the township has been moved to Thursday night, Feb. 13 beginning at 7:30 p.m. due to the weather.

The meeting will take place at the Sol Feinstone Elementary School at 1090 Eagle Road, Newtown 18940.

Representatives from Sunoco, Energy Transfer, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, and the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration are scheduled to attend the meeting with residents living in and around Mt. Eyre Manor.

On Monday, State Senator Steve Santarsiero and State Rep. Perry Warren joined U.S. Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick in calling for the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration to shut down the pipeline until a full investigation is complete and a clear cause for all leaks are identified and repaired.

On Jan. 31, a leak was identified in the pipeline and an unknown quantity of product was discharged. The pipeline flow was halted while a section of pipe was replaced. At least six residential wells have been confirmed contaminated with at least 100 more wells being tested in the vicinity of the Mt. Eyre neighborhood.

On Feb. 2, the state lawmakers said without the results of an investigation or a comprehensive analysis of the integrity of the rest of the pipeline sections and without communication to the township, or any of the impacted residents, Sunoco/Energy Transfer resumed the flow of jet fuel through the pipeline.

At a Feb. 6 community meeting, residents said they had been experiencing petroleum smells and tastes in their water since September 2023. "Notwithstanding that fact, Sunoco continued to claim there were no discharges," said the lawmakers.

"The leak itself was only discovered when Sunoco utilized historical records to target a previously repaired section of pipe and performed an excavation of that section," said the state lawmakers in a letter to acting administer Ben Kochman of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. "The history of Sunoco's failure to detect and manage what have likely been multiple discharges since at least 2023 erodes trust in Sunoco's current investigation.

"For these reasons, as the sole government agency with oversight of the pipeline's operations, it's imperative that PHSMA act immediately to shut down the pipeline and protect residents and the environment from further dangerous petroleum contamination," wrote the lawmakers in their letter.

Energy Transfer reported last Friday that its third-party consultants had inspected 93 water wells in the neighborhood and have received results for 42. Of the 93 sampled, six have hydrocarbons detected.

“We have 102 additional water wells scheduled (or in the process of being scheduled) to be inspected,” said the company that operates the pipeline. “We are making an effort to secure additional crews to accelerate this process. We will continue to provide bottled water to concerned landowners,” they said.

At the request of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), Energy Transfer said the pipeline is now operating at a 20 percent pressure reduction.

“In addition, we will be completing digs at certain locations along the pipeline to visually inspect the line. The work began over the weekend at two locations in the township and will proceed at additional sites along the line. We will notify landowners of the specific sites in advance of the work and will continue to provide more details to the community as work progresses.

Meanwhile, Energy Transfer said crews are actively working to recover product from wells and remediate the impacted area with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) providing environmental oversight.

Energy Transfer said it intends to formally request DEP oversight of the remediation through the Act 2 process.

According to Energy Transfer, the section of pipeline where the leak was detected was removed and replaced late last week, and the pipeline was placed back into service following the review and approval of PHMSA.

“We continue to operate the pipeline with 24/7 monitoring for our liquids control center, while also performing our routine operational surveillance. In addition to following the PHMSA protocols for restarting the line, we have company personnel on site to visually inspect and monitor the pipeline. The root cause investigation of the leak is underway and ongoing.”