May 22, 2015 3 min read

JEFFERSON – EQT Midstream Partners held an open house at Jefferson fire hall Thursday night to provide information about its planned natural gas pipeline expansion project.

According to the company, the Equitrans Expansion Project would stretch from Greene County into parts of Allegheny and Washington counties.

The proposed project includes the replacement of the existing 65-year-old Pratt Compressor Station along Route 188 in Franklin Township.

The new compressor station will be called Redhook. The expansion will increase the amount of natural gas transported each day.

The project also includes the installation of four miles of 30-inch pipeline between the new compressor system and the existing H-302 pipeline, and five miles of 24-inch pipelines between Applegate Gathering System and the existing H-148 in Allegheny and Washington counties.

Company officials want to eliminate the older, higher emission engines at the compressor station and bring in cleaner-burning engines to help their customers move more supply at a faster rate, according to the project management team.

Numerous residents brought a letter they received from EQT notifying them about the project and the possibility of their property being located in an area where work could be routed or possibly being adjacent to the easement.

The company provided multiple maps that described the new pipeline proposal, which would stretch from Jefferson Road passed Ankrom Road. EQT officials said the proposed route was changed three times so far, with the new route being confirmed only weeks ago.

The project management team set up information booths, along with photos and handouts, to provide information about the project, solicit input and answer questions from the public. Some area residents, including Douglas McNeely, were disappointed by the format of the open house. McNeely said he was hoping the company would present more information.

“I thought they’d take the time to explain it to all of us, not make us come up with our own questions to try and find out what this all means,” McNeely said.

He said he has been through the process before. McNeely said he has at least two other lines going through his property and did not protest either of those. However, he said he does not support the new proposal.

He said his main concern is the proposed portion of the line near his home.

“It’ll come through right next to my house,” McNeely said. “If I have anything to do about it, they won’t go through there.”

Others like McNeely questioned the route of the new pipeline and were given a business card with the number of the project head, Wallette Shealey, who was unable to attend the open house. Company officials referred to him as being the best person to answer questions about the route.

Jefferson Borough Councilwoman Sandra Dulik sees the benefits of the new pipeline and also the involvement of EQT in the community.

“This is progression, and I think everything comes in steps. You know it’s a domino effect,” Dulik said. “Businesses have an opportunity, land owners have an opportunity, the younger children have an opportunity to go into a profession now. This is a great thing, yes it is an inconvenience with all the traffic and the roads, but that’s not going to last. There is no such thing as a perfect situation.”

The company must file an environmental impact statement with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission by October 2015, which will then be sent to affected landowners. Construction is expected to begin in January 2017 and possibly be completed by late 2018.