Ned from Easton, PA writes to the FERC pointing out how bad the PennEast pipeline route is – and how easy it would be to fix it.
We are opposed to the PennEast pipeline project, and we call on the FERC to return a “no action” judgment for many unwise engineering decisions the company appears poised to make.
For example, how many interconnects does PennEast truly need with Transco/Columbia Gas pipeline in Williams and Lower Saucon Townships, Northampton County? The so-called Hellertown Lateral which hugs the northern side of Interstate 78’s west-bound lane from milepost 69.0 to its terminus in the existing city gate facility on the Hellertown- Raubsville Road, would, if built, provide an Interconnect between PennEast’s proposed system and Transco/Columbia Gas system. That being the case, why is a second Interconnect planned nearby at milepost 71.4 on land tract P9-7-13? Furthermore, with two Interconnects proposed within 4.5 miles of each other, why does PennEast need a separate right- of-way to connect those points (meaning the ROW as currently proposed to run from milepost 69.0 to 71.4)? Why not co-locate with the existing Transco/Columbia pipeline at least between these interconnection points which they plan to link? The second Transco Interconnect (the one proposed near milepost 71.4) is in remote, steeply sloped, inaccessible terrain more than 1500 feet from the nearest highway and, as proposed, will require construction of a dedicated access road to construct and to service it. The one at the western end of the Hellertown lateral is 10 ft from a major highway (the Hellertown-Raubsville Road) and has a truck- suitable entrance. Why can’t this Interconnect serve any gas cross-over needs between PennEast and Transco/Columbia?
Cannot FERC see that with poor judgments in planning such as this — and with the countless other engineering deficiencies, environmental challenges, and destruction of cultural/native peoples’ habitats as pointed out by numerous other commenters — that this entire PennEast Pipeline project is an unmitigated disaster? As noted above we urge a “no action” solution or, less preferably, a re-routing of the ROW from milepost 69 onto the Hellertown lateral with subsequent co-location on the Transco/Columbia ROW to reach tract P9-7-13 at presently designated milepost 71.4 and beyond.
See Ned’s submission below:
The Cost of the Pipeline 
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