100 yr old SE Mich gas lines

Has anyone noticed like a subtle trend in the local news over the last few years about gas explosions and leaks?

And then I find this article:
http://on.freep.com/1Dc7Nfn

Pretty much detailing how SE Michigan's Gas lines are a hundred years old and falling apart and the utilities aren't replacing them fast enough.

And then there's this leak story from June which pretty much renforces what the Freep said last fall.
http://bit.ly/1K45Dn4

Maybe I'm being paranoid but after the Royal Oak house explosion a few years back and the Warren warehouse explosion before that, I feel like I'm living on a time bomb.

I just thought this was relevant considering how much Detroit is sinking into the M1 while the rest of the city probably sits on 100 year old rusty gas pipes primed for an explosion that would give a literal meaning to Detroit's motto. [[Again)

There are two places in my neighborhood where I can smell natural gas walking down the street. I have called and Consumers Energy has sent people who never smell anything. I agree, something surely needs to be done. Maybe they should come and get me to show them where to sniff.

There's a very persistent leak on Temple at 3rd ave. MichCon has been out numerous times and it's still a pretty obvious leak [[obvious like I can smell it bicycling down Temple most days.)

It's an unfortunate situation because the guys at the mosque there spend a crazy amount of time landscaping around there. And the natural gas keeps killing their trees. And then it kills the vines they try to cultivate on the dead trees.

Here's a charming article on a guy doing independent research into the prevalence of gas leaks: https://medium.com/matter/the-enviro...t-406a9f0d4166

Notwithstanding explosions, it's worth noting that methane is a much more potent greenhouse gas than CO2.

A few years back the feds implemented a CAP program which basically said if a utility had a gas line that went to a residence or business that was not in use or dormant it had to be either removed or capped at the main,they provided millions to utility companies to off set the costs.

Here they were offering free gas hot water heaters,boilers,gas stoves,dryers,heaters etc. if you switched to gas,maybe it was so they did not have to go through the process of ripping up streets to remove the lines.

Cases like this you have to wonder how many utilities just added the funding to the bottom line instead of useing it for what it was intended for.

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Originally Posted by Richard

A few years back the feds implemented a CAP program which basically said if a utility had a gas line that went to a residence or business that was not in use or dormant it had to be either removed or capped at the main,they provided millions to utility companies to off set the costs.

Here they were offering free gas hot water heaters,boilers,gas stoves,dryers,heaters etc. if you switched to gas,maybe it was so they did not have to go through the process of ripping up streets to remove the lines.

Cases like this you have to wonder how many utilities just added the funding to the bottom line instead of useing it for what it was intended for.

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They replaced my gas line with a flexible composite line. I wonder what that will look like in 100 yrs. It went under the street.

I worked for MichCon back in the early 80's.They only replaced what they had to.If you smell gas or see dead grass,etc. and they claim there's nothing there...you need to worry.You should see them poking holes deep into the ground and inserting a probe with a machine to sniff the hole.

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Originally Posted by jayz

I just thought this was relevant considering how much Detroit is sinking into the M1 while the rest of the city probably sits on 100 year old rusty gas pipes primed for an explosion that would give a literal meaning to Detroit's motto. [[Again)

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I don't understand how you arrived at this statement. M1 is mostly being funded by several corporations and institutions with some federal money thrown in. Gas lines would be almost exclusively the responsibility of DTE.

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Originally Posted by downtownguy

I don't understand how you arrived at this statement. M1 is mostly being funded by several corporations and institutions with some federal money thrown in. Gas lines would be almost exclusively the responsibility of DTE.

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Valid point, I probably should not have included that, but my point was DTE is one of the major sponsors of the M1 rail.

Here's a related recent article: Feds propose expanding automatic gas shutoff valves to more homes

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Excess flow valves — also known as curb valves — automatically cut off natural gas if a line breaks. The valves cost about $30 apiece, and expanding their use has long been a goal of the National Transportation Safety Board and other safety advocates. The rule would expand the buildings in which they're required to be used to include more single- and multi-family homes and small businesses.

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A one-time cost of $30 seems like pretty cheap insurance considering the damage that could be averted over the life of a building. What took 'em so long? :confused:

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Originally Posted by Jimbo

They replaced my gas line with a flexible composite line. I wonder what that will look like in 100 yrs. It went under the street.

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They pulled a 30 year old plastic line out at my house. It looked like brand new.

The Warren explosion, if you're talking about the cleaners on Hoover, was probably done on purpose.

You might be more thinking of the explosion in Wayne, that one I think was from a gas line that wasn't in the building.