Gas pipeline to be installed site of 2015 rift in Arkansas

LITTLE ROCK — A new pipeline to carry natural gas is set to be installed under the Arkansas River between Little Rock and North Little Rock, close to the site where a similar pipeline ruptured about two years ago.

The 3,100-foot pipeline will be installed off property belonging to Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport/Adams Field by using a technique the pipeline owner said will make it a safer river crossing, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported. The pipeline will replace a more than 60-year-old pipeline that ruptured in May 2015, sending two big geysers of water upward and releasing nearly 4 million cubic feet of natural gas into the river. The cause of the rupture was caused by flooding that left the line unsupported. The backup pipeline wasn’t in operation when the rupture occurred. It runs from Texas to New Jersey.

Enbridge Inc. spokesman Michael Barnes said the timeline of the replacement project is still “pending approvals,” but will be installed in two parts.

“The project will use a horizontal directional drill to dig a tunnel and place the new pipe under the river,” Barnes said

The drill process will bury the pipeline under the riverbed creating a new natural-gas transportation and storage system that will be protected from the turbulence of the river.

Barnes said Texas Eastern Transmission LP will conduct the pipeline replacement. Enbridge is a parent company of Texas Eastern Transmission LP.

On Tuesday, the Little Rock Municipal Airport Commission granted a request from Texas Eastern Transmission LP to help advance the project.