TheScoop

This was originally sent out as our April 2022 Newsletter April 1st marks the beginning of National Safe Digging Month (NDSM)! And to kick-off the excavation season, the Common Ground Alliance (CGA) released results from a recent national survey … with some alarming feedback: nearly six-in-ten U.S. homeowners (58%) reported experiencing a utility service interruption […]

This was originally sent out as our December 2020 Newsletter I. CGA in Depth Report The CGA recently released a White Paper that shines some light on problems facing the industries we serve. After surveying more than 400 locate technicians, performing in-depth interviews with industry managers and decision-makers, and analyzing the recently released 2019 DIRT

This was originally sent out as our June 2020 Gas & Oil Industry Newsletter I. Pipeline Safety Report and Plan The American petroleum institute (API) recently released its Pipeline Safety Performance Report and Strategic Plan for 2020-2022.  The industry continues to make great strides at improving pipeline safety and finding better ways to engage important

This was originally sent out as our April 2020 Gas & Oil Industry Newsletter I. The New Normal & PHMSA GuidanceThe two phrases I have grown most weary of in 2020 are “unprecedented times” and “new normal”.  While the world is most certainly upside down, and all our lives have been changed dramatically, it is

This was originally sent out as our October 2019 Gas & Oil Industry Newsletter I. New Pipeline Rules for Natural Disasters Just this month PHMSA finalized a rule that significantly revises aspects of pipeline safety regulations Part 192 and 195 for natural gas and hazardous liquids pipelines.  Major changes include expansion of integrity assessments and

This was originally sent out as our August 2019 Water Newsletter I. Unmarked Water Line Severely Damaged  Earlier this summer, a contractor in Fort Lauderdale ruptured a pipe feeding the city’s primary water treatment plant.  Cuts to the city’s budget over eight years ago had eliminated crews who oversaw maintenance on the pipeline. The contractor did

This was originally sent out as our August 2019 Electric Newsletter I. Preparing for the Storm  We are in the middle of hurricane season, and NOAA updated their Atlantic forecast.  If predictions are right, we could see 10-17 named storms and 2-4 major hurricanes. In the Carolinas several electric utilities have been increasingly undergrounding their lines to reduce

This was originally sent out as our August 2019 Gas & Oil Newsletter I. New Safety Rules & Regulations New pipeline regulations continue to move forward at PHMSA as the Senate Commerce committee advanced the reauthorization of the Pipeline Safety Act.  The new rules will address over-pressurization and change professional engineering requirements.  The new Transmission, Liquids,

This was originally sent out as our August 2019 Telecommunications Newsletter I. Thousands lose internet after third-party damage On July 3, the internet was down all day in heavily populated areas of Raleigh-Durham, NC, Morrisville, NC, and Charleston, SC. A third party caused the widespread damages affecting customers of Comcast, Verizon and Wow!  The damages affected

This was originally sent out as our October 2019 Telecommunications Industry Newsletter I. City receives $8.5 million FEMA grant to underground utilities The city of Palm Beach, Florida has been awarded $8.5 million to remove utility polls and bury overhead power lines. The grant was part of FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Grant Programs fund, that became available after

This was originally sent out as our October 2019 Electric Industry Newsletter I. With outages increasing, city advocates for more underground utilities. Experiencing nine major outages that have effected more than 17,000 people since July, city officials of Shenandoah and the The Woodlands in Texas are looking for answers. Constant outages have created a reliability