Couple seeking stronger safety policies after house destroyed
Mark and Julie Nygren didn’t set out to be activists, but they are suggesting changes to the oversight of Colorado’s oil and gas pipelines based on their experience of losing their home and seeing part of their farm contaminated by a leaking gas line
More than four years after the discovery of the leak, the Nygrens are still renting a house in Johnstown, just north of their Weld County property, and remain embroiled in a lawsuit against DCP Midstream Operating Co., which owned the pipeline. As the Colorado Public Utilities Commission considers new pipeline- safety rules, the Nygrens want to share their hardwon insights with regulators.
“We’re farmers. We. don’t want to be activists. But we also want our neighbors and our communities to be safe, and we are concerned that not enough attention has been paid to our situation to correct it from happening to someone else,” Julie said in a recent interview.
Conor Farley, an administrative law judge at the PUC, heard from the public Thursday on a proposal to implement a 2021 law requiring the state to strengthen safety rules and adopt regulations to comply with federal requirements.
Several times during the three-hour-plus hearing, speakers referred to the “Nygren rules.” The couple recommended changes to the draft rules based on events that required the digging of a pit on their land that was more than 20 feet deep and 3 acres wide to muck out the pollution.
“The story of Mark and Julie Nygren serves as a poignant reminder of what is at stake in
this rule-making. All Colorado residents, in urban and rural areas, deserve to feel safe in their homes and be protected from avoidable pipeline accidents,” said state Rep. Tammy Story, a Conifer Democrat who sponsored the legislation mandating new regulations.
Story also requested an audit of the state’s Gas Pipeline Safety program. The 121- page report released June 12 was a blistering critique of the state’s oversight of natural gas pipelines. The state auditor’s office said the program repeatedly violated state and federal regulations.
The problems cited in the audit included inadequate inspections to a lack of documented action against repeat offenders even following explosions that killed and injured people.
For now, the Nygrens hope the PUC will strengthen draft rules on using advanced technology to detect leaks and require the annual reporting of leaks. The state and the federal agency that oversees pipelines, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, or PHMSA, require reports only when an incident kills or hospitalizes someone; causes property damage of more than $122,000; or unintentionally releases 3 million cubic feet of gas, enough to power 17,000 average households for a day.
During the hearing, officials from Boulder and Adams counties and Broomfield endorsed the Nygrens’ proposed amendments to the rules.
While the state considers new rules, PHMSA is going through its own update to improve safety and reduce emissions from lines. The state and PHMSA regulate different pipelines, depending on the size of the line, whether it crosses state lines and what type of liquids it carries.
The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission oversees flowlines, which connect an oil or gas well to surrounding equipment. The American Petroleum Institute- Colorado said in comments to the PUC that it expects the federal agency to pass a comprehensive approach to dealing with leaks and asked the state to wait until PHMSA acts. If the PUC moves ahead, oil and gas companies could end up facing conflicting state and federal rules, API said.
The Colorado Oil and Gas Association also urged a delay. The trade organization supports mapping pipelines as long as the safety and security of the lines are considered, said Dan Haley, COGA’S CEO and president.
Utilities and pipeline operators contend that the level of detail in the maps of pipelines that would be available to the public could make the equipment the targets of terrorists or vandals.
Attorney Matt Sura, who is representing the Nygrens before the PUC, said the legislation clearly mandates that all pipelines within the PUC’S jurisdiction be mapped at a specific level of detail. He said the scale of detail backed by the industry means people will “have no idea if the oil and gas pipelines are on their street, in their backyard, two streets over.”
Proponents of stronger rules don’t want the PUC to delay a decision.
“Nearly two years have passed since Senate Bill 108 was signed into law by Gov. (Jared) Polis. Precious time has lapsed,” Story said.
Under the PUC’S draft rules, companies would have to report whether they’re using advanced technology and if they’re not, why not. The rules being considered by PHMSA would require companies to use the latest technology.
The law that mandated updating state regulations requires the regulations be at least as strict as PHMSA’S rules.
The Nygrens said they will keep pushing for stronger rules. Meanwhile, they said they don’t know when they’ll be able to build a new home on their property. DCP Midstream has paid the Nygrens’ rent, but they aren’t sure how long that will continue.
Phillips 66 bought the publicly held units of DCP Midstream in January.
The couple’s lawsuit against the pipeline company seeks compensation for their home, business losses and health problems they attribute to what they say was an ongoing leak over several years. Their insurance doesn’t cover the damage.
“From Day 1, when they found the leak and when they found out that it was under and all around in our home, Julie has been very strong in her feelings about how many other people could be going through this and not know it. We didn’t,” Mark said.