Holland, MI (WHTC) – Wolverine Pipe Line Company wants to replace a 53-year-old gas pipeline under Lake Macatawa.
On Tuesday, consulting engineer Brian Cooper told Holland City Council that Wolverine found evidence of cracks in the 53-year-old pipeline and must replace it before Feb. 1.
Consulting engineer Brian Cooper, of the Grand Rapids-based HT Engineering, said the plan is to install a new 8-inch pipeline because fixing the old one would be too expensive.
The work will disrupt area residents, he said, and sound barriers will be used to cut the 110-decibel construction noise down by nearly half.
“Wolverine’s No. 1 priority is the safety of the public, of the environment AND of its employees” he said at Tuesday’s city council study session. “So we do recognize that this project will cause some short-term inconvenience and disruption, especially right on the south side of the lake there. The long-term integrity of the pipeline is definitley worth the trouble.”
South Shore Drive resident Carol McGeehan lives three doors down from the pipeline and worries about what would happen if the old pipe breaks. She asked for Wolverine and city officials for details on
- Worlverine’s oil-spill response plan, including evacuation and clean-up
- What safety guarentees the company will provide the city’s residents
- Whether the old pipe will carry oil during construction
- Whether the new pipeline is destined to carry tar sands oil
- How residents can find pipeline safety reports
“these are not hypothetical concerns. We all know about the Kalamazoo River oil spill in 2010,” McGeehan said, noting that the Enbridge spill recovery is incomplete. “Bettter to be safe than sorry and proactive than reactive. So, I’m hoping these concerns are addressed.”
People living on Lake Mac’s north side, near Division and Wisteria Lane, will also be affected.
Cooper said construction should start in December and wrap up in January. Wolverine will designate an employee to respond to residents’ concerns, he said.
City council members could vote on the permit as early as next week.
