North Carolina Grants Water Permit for Transco Gas Pipeline Expansion
(P&GJ) — The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality Division of Water Resources has issued a water quality certification with conditions for Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Co. LLC’s proposed natural gas pipeline expansion in North Carolina.
The certification covers the Southeast Supply Enhancement Project, which includes upgrades to existing pipeline infrastructure and the installation of new 42-inch-diameter pipe. The project includes about 4.4 miles of pipeline in Rockingham County, known as the Eden Loop, and roughly 24.1 miles in Guilford, Forsyth and Davidson counties, known as the Salem Loop.
Because construction will disturb wetlands, waterways and streambanks, Transco applied for a Clean Water Act Section 401 Individual Water Quality Certification, along with riparian buffer authorizations for the Jordan Lake and Randleman Lake watersheds. The authorizations are required where vegetation must be maintained along waterways and would be removed during construction.
“Safeguarding water quality and North Carolinians' health remains paramount to the department,” DEQ Secretary Reid Wilson said. “That's why DWR's certification for the pipeline expansion project included conditions to protect wetlands and streams.”
According to DWR, the review considered more than 1,000 public comments and testimony from two public hearings held in early September. The certification requires Transco to implement a series of environmental protections during and after construction, including oversight by an environmental inspector, limits on construction right-of-way at water crossings, and restoration of disturbed streams and wetlands to pre-construction conditions.
The company must also monitor restored wetlands and streams quarterly for at least three years. While Transco is not required to fully offset all impacts through off-site restoration, it has agreed to purchase mitigation credits to compensate for impacts to riparian buffers in the Jordan and Randleman lake areas.
DWR noted that while public comments raised broader concerns about economic need, emissions and pipeline safety, the agency’s authority under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act is limited to evaluating impacts on water quality.