The Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company (TGP) has announced that it plans to bypass Central Massachusetts and route the Northeast Energy Direct natural gas pipeline through southern New Hampshire instead.
TGP, a subsidiary of Kinder Morgan Inc., announced that it would submit an amended filing with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on Monday, Dec. 8, that will detail the changes. In that filing, TGP will propose to run the pipeline from Dracut to Pennsylvania through southern New Hampshire where existing utility corridors will be utilized to “lessen the environmental impact of the project,” according to TGP. The company will also be filing for the use of an alternative New York route.
“By adopting the New York Powerline Alternative and the New Hampshire Powerline Alternative, TGP will be able to construct significantly more of the pipeline adjacent to and parallel with existing utility corridors in portions of New York, Massachusetts and New Hampshire, reduce the need for construction in undeveloped portions of the market path region and lessen environmental impacts,” Kimberly S. Watson, Kinder Morgan East Region Pipelines President, said in a statement.
TGP will be working with Liberty Utilities and others to expand natural gas service into new areas in New Hampshire, she said.
The pending project, which is subject to lengthy review, was previously proposed to have TGP building a 36-inch pipeline through about 40 communities across the northern part of Massachusetts. This would have linked a distribution center in Dracut with shale fields in Pennsylvania, where natural gas is harvested through fracking, which itself has generated opposition from fracking opponents in Massachusetts.
The newly proposed path bypasses 13 communities in Massachusetts that would previously have had the pipeline pass through them. These include Athol, Ashburnham and Winchendon. However, newly impacted Massachusetts communities include Cheshire, Hancock, Lanesborough and Shelbourne, according to TGP.
The new route will include 188 miles of new and co-located mainline pipeline facilities, including approximately 64 miles of pipeline generally co-located with an existing power utility corridor in eastern Massachusetts, and approximately 71 miles of pipeline generally co-located with an existing power utility corridor in southern New Hampshire, according to TGP.
TGP has stated that the project would bring additional natural gas to the region to meet growing needs. Opponents have cited environmental concerns.
