Drivers had something new to observe on Highway 35, this past week, at the point informally known as Hopper’s Hill, featuring the Omineca Ski Club at the base. A long hose was unmistakably strung out along the long incline. It is at least six kilometres in length. It was a topic of watercooler chatter since it appeared.
It was natural to surmise that it had something to do with the industrial activity not too far beyond the apex of the hill. That’s where the installation work is being done to build the natural gas pipeline through the area.
“The hose along Highway 35 is required for the hydrostatic testing activity we are about to undertake in relation to the Coastal GasLink (CGL) project,” said John Hunt, Michels Canada’s director for the CGL project.
Michels is the prime contractor building the section of the pipeline passing through the Lakes District.
“We intend to test three pipeline sections that are mechanically complete,” Hunt explained. “We take water from a regulatorily approved water source, [which is Burns Lake], fill the pipe test sections, increase the internal pressure above the intended operating pressure, release the water within the approved (same) watershed, then run a drying tool called a ‘pig’ through the line and a smart tool called a ‘smart pig’ to further test the line for any defects. If any, we dig up that location and further inspect the pipe.”
This testing requires no other chemicals, just water. The intake is filtered so no fish or other aquatic life are sucked into the system, and the water goes back into the watershed at the end. Michels will be testing 11 sections of the pipeline in this manner, all to exact specifications pre-approved by government. Hunt said it was an important part of the process because it is effective at troubleshooting weak spots.
Such tests are a sign of significant progress in the construction duties on the local section of the line. At last report, presented publicly by CGL and its partners within the last few weeks, the part of the pipeline being built in the Lakes District – known within the project as Section 6 – has about 580 workers installing the remaining 64 per cent of their segment.
The public doesn’t get to see most of the construction effort, since most of it is in remote areas away from regular public view, other than a few road crossings. The long hose for running the test water was an unusual view into the local pipelining work going on, even if it was just a brief and pedestrian part of the process.
