Analysis Of Sheila Mcginty: The Three Legs Of Pipeline Planning

The Three Legs of Pipeline Planning

Author: Sheila McGinty

Pipeline planning has long been influenced by three major factors: land, the environment, and engineering. In order to stay competitive in today’s market, owners and operators must be able to efficiently and cost-effectively manage all three. In recent years, geographic information systems (GIS) and mobile technology have played a critical role in helping achieve this – providing planners with the data they need to identify routes that are safe, profitable, and sustainable.

In the past, the traditional method of selecting a route involved finding the shortest path between two locations, gathering all relevant information pertaining to the route area (maps, photographs, field surveys,

As mentioned previously, the shortest, straight-line routing choice may appear to be the most cost-effective option from a “desktop-data” perspective, but if that route runs through sensitive areas, costs will undoubtedly go up when the field assessment reveals a need for more permitting.

Time can also be a major factor and is often directly related to the schedule needed to perform environmental studies and obtain permits. For instance, there may be a relatively short window each year when trees can be cut and land can be cleared in an effort to protect local wildlife and/or endangered species. Cultural and/or historical areas, such as the site of a pioneer settlement or a Native American village, can involve investigation and the relocation of artifacts, which must be factored into costs and timelines as well. Mobile technology and GIS can be used to develop a route that avoids these areas – lowering permitting costs and keeping pipeline planning projects free from

Quite simply, this refers to what is technically feasible and/or possible. For example, horizontal directional drilling (HDD) can be an effective way to avoid disturbing a stream or having to cross watercourses above land. However, this sometimes is not feasible, especially in areas where there are significant changes in elevation or certain rock and soil types are present.

As with the other two legs, engineering choices involve trade-offs. Each option comes with a variety of elements that can add to or lower costs. In Marcellus-Utica operations, for instance, it can cost as much as $200,000 to cross over another gas line (cite?). And if a route involves multiple crossings, it’s easy to see how quickly the cost of construction can increase. Information technology can help compile these costs and determine which route provides the best value for the