Spectra Gas Pipeline Problems: AIM, Fire, Conflict

About the Series

This DeSmog series looks at the myriad problems associated with Spectra Energy’s (now merged with Enbridge Inc.) gas pipeline system as the company seeks to expand the pipeline network across the Northeast. The series explores conflicts of interest and whistleblower claims surrounding the Algonquin Incremental Market (AIM) pipeline, Atlantic Bridge pipeline, and more.

Enbridge, Spectra Energy and its subsidiaries, including Algonquin Gas Transmission and Texas Eastern Transmission, face increasing scrutiny from members of Congress and federal agencies including the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). The aftermath of the Salem Township explosion, and other concerns brought to light by DeSmog and other investigations, raise serious questions around Spectra’s intention to site a pipeline carrying highly pressurized natural gas within 1,200 feet of Indian Point’s nuclear reactor #3. 

This is an ongoing series, so check back for more developments as DeSmog continues to investigate. 

In This Series

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Lawmakers from Massachusetts urged Canadian energy-giant Enbridge on Wednesday to reconsider the siting of a compressor station in a densely populated area outside of Boston. In a letter to the com...
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A contractor working for the federal government to monitor construction of Enbridgeโ€™s Atlantic Bridge natural gas project works for the company in various other capacities, according to documents D...
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The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is permitting a contractor with a known conflict of interest to monitor Enbridgeโ€™s Atlantic Bride natural gas project. This decision joins a growing ...
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Officials from the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) acknowledged they regularly allow energy companies to exclusively preview and revise draft permits as a matter of commo...
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Massachusetts environmental officials allowed Spectra Energy to quietly review and edit a draft approval of an air pollution permit the state plans to grant the company for its Atlantic Bridge gasย ...
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As Spectra Energy was seeking state permits for its natural gas projects running though Massachusetts, company lobbyists maintained a close and ongoing relationship with top state environmental off...
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A document submitted to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) suggests the agency had clear information that a contractor hired to review Spectra Energyโ€™s proposed Atlantic Bridge gas pro...
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The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has approved the construction of a new gas pipeline project, despite an ongoing inquiry by two U.S. senators into a possible conflict of interest in ...
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In a January 5 letter to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Massachusetts Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey demanded more answers on a possible conflict of interest in the envir...
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The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) concluded in an environmental assessment that a proposed Spectra Energy gas compressor station in a residential Massachusetts neighborhood would not ...
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Phil Suter, the spouse of Maggie Suter, an official at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) who led the review for two gas pipeline projects by Spectra Energy, is a paid consultant on a ...
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Connecticut regulators dealt a blow to pipeline company Spectra Energy Corp. this weekย by abandoning several utility proposals that would have relied on Spectra's beleaguered Access Northeast pipel...
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Responding to an inquiry by two U.S. senators, the chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) cited not-yet-published guidelines in an attempt to deny any missteps by the Commissio...
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Documents filed at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) show thatย a contractor hired by the government to provide an independent environmental assessment for Spectra Energyโ€™s Atlantic Br...
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In a letter to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Massachusetts Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey demand new answers about an alleged conflict of interest in the environmental r...
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In April, a massive explosion ripped through rural Salem Township, Pennsylvania when natural gas fromย a pipeline buried in a field suddenlyย ignited. The Salem Township explosion offers a glimpse...
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In a potential conflict of interest, a contractor hired by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to review a proposed Spectra Energy natural gas pipeline project had already been working ...
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Two US Senators have demanded the Federal Energy Regulatoryย Commission (FERC) cancel the environmental assessment of a natural gas project after DeSmog revealed a potential conflict of interest in ...
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An engineering company with a $1.8 million stake in a Spectra Energy natural gas project hired a former top Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) official who had been managing the environmen...
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A contractor hired last year by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to review a proposed gas pipeline by Spectra Energy, had already been working for the company on a related project, a...
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A business advocacy group lobbied for the reappointment of a federal energy commissioner while one of its own members sought approval for several projects from the same federal regulator, a DeSmog ...