McHenry County Blog

Lots of pipelines run throughout McHenry County.

Pipelines running though McHenry County.  One running Northwest to Southeast through Bull Valley is being repaired.

About a week ago, work began in a field two hundred feet north of the Boone Creek Golf Course on Mason Hill Road and about 500 feet from Boone Creek.

There’s a long trench in the cornfield north of the Boone Creek Golf Club.

The problem is located between Bull Valley and Mason Hill Roads.

A close-up of the water at the bottom of the area where an Enbridge pipeline is being repaired in McHenry County.

A friend of McHenry County Blogs reports,

It is “the size of 10 parking spaces.

“It is half full of green water that looks like they pump out everyday as it fills up.”

Where is the pipeline problem?

One can clearly see where the pipeline runs on this Mapquest aerial image. Look at the line running from Northwest to the Southeast. The arrow is approximately where the pipeline repair is occurring.

The red arrow points to the approximate location of the pipeline work.

A part of the U.S. Department of Transportation is the watch dog. Here is what I received from the Pipeline Hazardous Materials Safety Administration:

“According to the information you provided, the pipeline you ask about appears to be an Enbridge Energy, Limited Partnership owned/operated line which transports crude oils from Superior, Wisconsin to Griffith, Indiana.

“PHMSA does not require pipeline operators to provide notice to the agency in advance of conducting routine repairs on a pipeline.

“In addition, depending on local laws, notifications may not be required to local authorities for routine repairs unless the operator is required to obtain a permit to conduct excavation activities to impact a roadway or other public owned infrastructure or facility.

“For more information about Enbridge pipelines, including past failures, visit the Operator Information page of our Stakeholder Communications website for Enbridge Energy, Limited Partnership.”

I was referred to the Federal agency by Illinois EPA Emergency Response employee Kendra Dickerson.

She told me, “When companies work on pipelines they don’t have to notify the EPA. They coordinate with the Pipeline Safety and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.”

Those who have looked at how much the price of gasoline has jumped might be interested in knowing that the cause was a broken pipeline in Wisconsin that brings petroleum to the Chicago area.

Pipelines in McHenry County.  Think of the consequences of a broken pipeline in Cary.McHenry County has pipelines crisscrossing it.

So, besides the potential aquifer, stream and Fox River pollution that could result from a local pipeline break, our gasoline prices might go up, too.

Former Chicago anchor Lester Holt told a story about aging gas pipelines Saturday night.

Burning pipelines in Pennsylvania were featured on NBC-TV New tonight.

The recent Pennsylvania blast.

That was the “hook.”

Last September's fire in California was shown.

Reference was made to the one that exploded in California because of faulty welds.

The association of pipelines was quoted as saying they should last 100 years…or longer.

Location of McHenry County pipelines.

Of local interest is that McHenry County has pipelines crisscrossing the area.  (More maps here.)

One of the pipelines running through Cary near the Fox River carries oil. Here is oil that spilled out in Romeoville in mid-September, 2010.

One of the older ones runs down the Commonwealth Edison right-of-way through Cary.  It’s the same pipeline that burst in the South Suburbs spilling a fair amount of oil.  This pipeline is so old that a “pig” can’t be run inside it to check for problems.

Oil pipeline bursting in Romeoville.

Oil on the street.

Oil in a pond threatening to overflow.

Thirty inch gas pipeline blowing up in California.

40-60 years old.

People killed.

People running for their lives, a wall of fire pursuing them.

Some who lived nearby aid they smelled gas before the massive explosion.

Possible corrosion of the pipe, said National Transportation Safety Board member Christopher Hart.

McHenry County has pipelines that age. I remember some being installed while I was McHenry County Treasurer from 1966-1970.

After I wrote this article and discussed it with an engineer friend who had worked in the oil fields, I was told not to worry, because there are “pigs” that rumble through the pipelines searching for weak spots. Any found are repaired, he said.

Below are the gas pipelines in McHenry County.

Gas pipelines in McHenry County. Click to enlarge.

If you live near one and smell natural gas, let the California experience be instructive.  Call authorities immediately.

Below is a map of liquid pipelines in McHenry County:

Liquid pipelines in McHenry County. One runs parallel to the Fox River.

The Natural Resources Defense Council provides this map showing counties that will have water problems in 2050, assuming no climate change.

The Natural Resources Defense Council provides this map showing counties that will have water problems in 2050, assuming climate change.

A while back I sat down with a reader for a talk at Conscious Cup Coffee.

We discussed county politics and problems.

I concluded that the availability of drinking water was the biggest problem facing the county.

Tuesday in an article on pipelines I tried to raise consciousness about the possibility of a pipeline oil leak similar to the one that occurred recently in southwestern Michigan.

I remember that pipelines were being laid when I was county treasurer.

That’s more than 40 years ago.

It’s a safe bet that pipeline safety was not a good then as with more recently laid pipelines.

This map shows the hazardous liquid pipeline running through McHenry County.

Below is the press release about the seminar:

PROTECTING GROUNDWATER IN McHENRY COUNTY A PUBLIC FORUM

WOODSTOCK, IL – Future generations of McHenry County residents, businesses, and governments could face a potentially crippling water shortage.

To address this issue and begin to educate the general public, Imagine McHenry County, and McHenry County College will bring county water resource specialists, educators, plumbing experts, religious professionals, and landscapers together for a free Water Forum and Resource Fair on Saturday morning, August 7.

This will be an opportunity to learn about our sole source of drinking water – groundwater – and how to protect it.

The Forum will highlight local businesses whose practices and products work to protect and conserve our finite water supply. Vendors will offer products and services.

“Water is personal, water is local, water is regional, water is statewide. Everybody has a different idea, a different approach, a different issue, a different concern, but water is the most personal issue we have,”

said award-winning journalist Susan J. Marks in a recent interview.

Here's a map I found showing how water could be piped from the Great Lakes region west, south and southwest.

The Forum’s organizers hope that everyone will become better informed about the basic science and economics involved in protecting our water supply, and learn simple and practical ways to make a big difference.

The Water Forum and Resource Fair on Saturday, August 7, will begin at 8:30 a.m. at the McHenry County College, Conference Room, 8900 US Hwy 14, Crystal Lake, Illinois.  The public is encouraged to visit the vendor tables both before the event and during break.

Imagine McHenry County (IMC) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the promotion of a grass roots planning process for quality growth countywide.  To learn more about this event and other initiatives of IMC, please see the IMC Facebook page or contact County Board Member, Barbara Wheeler, 815-245-4556.

August 1, 2010, Chicago Tribune article. (Click to enlarge any image.)

When I read of the leaking pipeline in southwestern Michigan, it brought back the memory of the pipeline map that I got while fighting the Lakeland Pipeline with then State Rep. Ann Hughes and State Sen. Dick Klemm.

As the result of the pressure put on owner Enbridge, the new pipeline is probably as safe as one can get.

The old ones running through McHenry County.

Well, that remains to be seen.

Below is a map of the hazardous liquids crossing McHenry County. We’re talking propane, gasoline, oil.

This map shows the pipelines carrying hazardous liquids through McHenry County.

Chicago Tribune article of July 29, 2010.

If one with oil in it ruptures, you can figure out what stream, lake or river would look like the photo in the July 29th Chicago Tribune article above.

The map below shows the gas transmission lines.

Natural gas pipelines traversing McHenry County.

If ruptured with a spark nearby, they would go “Boom.”

Below you can see a map with both types of pipelines.

This shows all the pipelines running through McHenry County.