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Gas engineer Darren Musi outlines safety, SOAR pursuit and zero‑emission line reclamation
Summary
Darren Musi described the gas crew's training and higher‑frequency inspection program, the city's pursuit of a SOAR operational award, and use of a ZVAC machine to reclaim about 1,400 feet of abandoned gas main without atmospheric emissions.
Darren Musi, the city’s gas engineer, briefed the council on gas operations, crew qualifications and recent field work that reduced emissions during pipeline abandonment.
Musi said the utility is applying for the System Operational Achievement Recognition (SOAR) award and is aiming for gold. "We're shooting for gold," he said, noting the program measures safety, system improvement, system integrity and workforce development.
He described the crew's training regimen and proactive maintenance: leak surveys and corrosion surveys are performed on a three‑year rotating basis (more frequent than the typical five‑year regulatory interval), valves are exercised annually (the system has roughly 1,200 valves), and the utility fixes leaks it finds rather than leaving grade‑3 leaks in place.
Musi highlighted a recent environmental and operational improvement: the utility used a ZVAC (zero‑emission vacuum/compression) machine acquired with grant funds to reclaim gas from approximately 1,400 feet of abandoned 2‑inch main by transferring the gas into a live main instead of purging to atmosphere. "So really, really cool... we are able to hook up to that 1,400 feet of abandoned line and then basically run another line to our live gas main and use that ZVAC equipment to [move] the gas out and put it into our live main," he said.
Why it matters: the steps described reduce environmental emissions, improve emergency readiness and reflect above‑minimum regulatory practices intended to keep the system in good condition.
Next steps: Musi said the utility will continue to apply for SOAR recognition and to expand training, public awareness and damage‑prevention outreach.
