Con Edison installs over 65 miles of new gas main in 2008

NEW YORK – As part of the company’s ongoing infrastructure investment program, Con Edison announced today that it had installed over 65 miles of new natural gas main piping in 2008. In most cases, it replaced smaller cast iron and uncoated steel pipe with larger diameter or higher pressure main to increase capacity and prepare for future growth.

The company is establishing state-of-the-art technologies to increase the system’s reliability with stronger gas pipe materials and making the installation of the new pipe as unobtrusive as possible. Con Edison has also developed the use of protective polyethylene coatings and plastics which make the gas pipes stronger and less likely to damage than older cast iron main.

About half of the new pipe was replaced using a new cutting-edge method known as "trenchless technology," which requires minimal digging and reduces traffic disruption. Of the 65 miles of new gas main, 28 miles were replaced in Westchester, 17 miles were replaced in Queens, 14 miles were replaced in the Bronx, and 6 miles were replaced in Manhattan.

The company also added 5 miles of new, larger-sized distribution and transmission pipelines, as well as a new regulator station in Queens to improve system pressure.

The company also has a recycling program for unused scrap plastic gas main that produced 75 tons of recyclable materials last year alone. The scrap plastic is collected and sold to a vendor who takes it to a nearby recycling facility in Brooklyn where it is broken down, sorted by grade, packed and tied into blocks. The blocks are then purchased by companies who grind them into pellets and eventually sell them to plastic product manufacturers.

"Our investments are crucial to providing safe and reliable gas service to our customers.  We are glad that we can help the environment at the same time," said Mary Jane McCartney, senior vice president of Gas Operations at Con Edison.

Con Edison expects to invest more than $1.5 billion over the next five years on its gas delivery system to maintain reliability and support economic growth in New York City and Westchester County. The company distributes natural gas to more than 1 million customers in Manhattan, the Bronx, part of Queens, and most of Westchester County.

Contact:
Con Edison Media Relations
Office of Media Relations
Consolidated Edison Co. of New York, Inc.
4 Irving Place
New York, NY 10003