Spectra Energy wants to build a gas compressor station at
the base of the Fore River Bridge in North Weymouth as part of the expansion of
their pipelines through New England. This would be incredibly dangerous for
local residents and expensive for everyone in Massachusetts.
Compressor stations are explosive. Spectra is quick to tell
you that they have never had an explosion but a simple Google search brings up
a list of multiple compressor and pipeline explosions associated with Spectra
and their subsidiaries/affiliates. If
this compressor explodes it will damage or destroy the bridge and half a dozen
volatile regional facilities such as the Calpine power plant that also border
the new bridge, not to mention the significant number of homes within a half
mile radius of the compressor site in Weymouth, Quincy and Braintree.
Compressors also vent toxic gases including methane,
toluene, radon and benzene 24 hours a day. When cleaning, repairing, or working
on the pipelines they have to vent massive amounts of pollutants to empty the
lines to allow access by their employees. During an explosion the compressor
would release hundreds of thousands of metric tons of pollutants into our
environment.
Spectra says they’re expanding the pipes to meet increasing
energy needs and to lower gas prices. This is untrue. Much of the fracked gas
that would be shipped through these pipes will go to Canada for offshoring
purposes as LNG. Canadian media outlets have been very honest about this in
their reports. Governor Baker has stated he is considering a tariff on utility
rate payers to fund the expansion of the pipelines, passing the cost of
Spectra’s infrastructure onto Massachusetts residents.
Spectra also says construction of the compressor will bring
jobs to the area. They fail to mention that the jobs created by the compressor
will be a small number of temporary construction jobs with no guarantee of
hiring local labor. There is one potential full time job for someone to monitor
the station during the workday. All other monitoring would be done remotely
from Texas.
Spectra isn’t worried about any of these things. They don’t
have to be. They don’t live here.
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