In wake of deadly East Harlem explosion, Con Edison testing pilot program to check gas mains more...

[hrmjustin]

In wake of deadly East Harlem explosion, Con Edison testing pilot program to check gas mains more frequently

ANNIE KARNI

In the wake of the East Harlem gas explosion that killed eight and injured more than 60, Consolidated Edison is seeking to increase its efforts to detect gas leaks with new technology.

“We are going to begin a pilot program combining our gas leak testing equipment and our [stray] voltage equipment in the same vehicle,” Consolidated Edison President Craig Ivey said Friday at a State Assembly hearing on improving gas safety efforts. “We are also examining technology that allows us to simultaneously survey both gas mains under the street, and gas service lines under the sidewalk."

Consolidated Edison’s fleet of vehicles scans electrical delivery systems across the city 12 times a year, Ivey said. The gas mains are checked only once a year. The pilot program seeks to build a car that could check for gas leaks and contact voltage at the same time.


Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypolitics/wake-deadly-east-harlem-explosion-edison-testing-pilot-program-check-gas-mains-frequently-blog-entry-1.1777552#ixzz30fbGQh8o

[hrmjustin]

1. At Assembly hearing, talk of unavoidable, unmistakable gas leaks

Scott Waldman

ALBANY—New York City has the highest rates of gas leaks per mile of any public utility system in the country.

The city relies on a network of cast iron, steel and plastic pipes, some older than a century, and two percent of the gas disappears somewhere along the line.

The first line of defense is the human nose, not technology.

Those were among the facts revealed at an Assembly hearing Friday morning on gas utility safety. The hearing came just weeks after a gas line explosion leveled a Harlem building, killing eight people and injuring more than 60. Small gas leaks were detected below the surface of the sidewalk where a building collapsed.

http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/albany/2014/05/8544760/assembly-hearing-talk-unavoidable-unmistakable-gas-leaks