Gas Safety Inc. Projects
2017
Emissions Study
Fall 2016 – Present
Collaboration with Non profits Home Energy Efficiency Team (HEET), Mothers Out Front, Boston University Professor Nathan Phillips and Local gas operators to define environmentally sensitive leaks as required by Mass Statute
https://malegislature.gov/Bills/188/House/H2950
Collaboration with Non profit Home Energy Efficiency Team (HEET) Grant working on gas leak audits throughout Massachusetts service area
2016 –Present
GSI collaboration with nonprofit HEET where GSI audits gas leaks to compare against utility supplied leak data.
Greenfield Mass Cavity Ringdown Spectrometer (CRDS) Survey
September 2016
GSI conducted CRDS survey of all roadways in Greenfield, Massachusetts for local nonprofit Greening Greenfield
Sierra Club Hartford CT Cavity Ringdown Spectrometer (CRDS) Survey
June 2016
Natural Gas Leak Study in Collaboration with Boston University Professor Nathan Phillips
GSI conducts CRDS survey of all roadways in Hartford, CT for Greater Hartford Sierra Club
Emerald Necklace Conservancy (ENC) Gas leak Survey
October 2015
GSI conducts gas leak survey for Emerald Necklace Conservancy (ENC) to identify natural gas leaks on the Emerald Necklace Park system throughout greater Boston and identify gas leaks that have migrated within the root zones of ENC trees.
Metropolitan Area Planning Council, Department of Transportation, Technical Assistance Grant (TAG)
October 2015 – October 2016
GSI collaborated with quasi governmental agency MAPC and nonprofit HEET to analyze best practices for communities to coordinate with local utilities on pipeline repair and replacement programs.
https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/tag/PrjHome.rdm?prj=693&s=4CB8DF138D3941EAB943C81A895509E1&
=1&nocache=8894
http://www.mapc.org/mapc-heet-release-report-gas-leaks
http://fixourpipes.org/
Montgomery County, MD Gas Leak Survey & Training
June 2015
Montgomery County, MD engaged Gas Safety Inc. (GSI) to train MC DOT arborists to identify trees damaged by natural gas pipeline leakage and to collect gas leak/ tree damage data in selected areas.
Madison County, NY Compressor Station Monitoring
December 2015
GSI establishes a methane CH4 baseline using cavity ringdown spectrometer technology to document ambient methane in locus of proposed permitted natural gas compressor station in Georgetown, NY
Methane Survey Cambridge Massachusetts – Sommerville, Massachusetts
Collaboration with Home Energy Efficiency Team & Nathan Phillips Boston University
2014
GSI conducts CRDS survey of all public roadways in the communities of Cambridge, Ma, and Sommerville, Ma in collaboration with heetma.org and Nathan Phillips of Boston University to compare industry supplied data with our independent analysis led by HEET.
https://www.heetma.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Squeaky-Leak-Report-Public1.pdf
Natural Gas Pipeline Replacement Research Project
2014-2015
GSI research collaboration with Morgan Gallagher Duke University, Professor Rob Jackson Phd. Stanford University, Professor Nathan Phillips Phd. Boston University, Adrian Downes Phd. Kaiguang Zhao Phd. comparing pipeline systems natural gas leak across Cincinatti, OH, Manhattan, NY, Boston, MA and Durham, NC. GSI conducted city wide cavity ringdown spectrometer surveys to compare CH4 natural gas levels in Cincinnati, OH and Durham, NC where major replacement of the natural gas system occurred over the last 20 years to eliminate leak prone pipelines, with systems that have not been replaced in Boston and the Manhattan borough of NYC. This work led to Published paper in 2015 “Natural Gas Pipeline Replacement Programs Reduce methane Leaks and Improve Public Safety” in Environmental Science and Technology August 2015.
Damascus Citizens for Sustainability Pennsylvania / New York 2011-Ongoing
Manhattan Emissions Study
http://www.damascuscitizensforsustainability.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/GAM.NY_.2015.pdf
NY / PA Methane Baseline studies
GSI heads project Damasacus Citizens for Sustainability (DCS), Narrowsburg, NY, to establish methane baseline levels in selected communities across Pennsylvania and New York. GSI and DCS worked throughout PA to establish methane baseline levels with CRDS technology and compare with Southern Tier NY state border communities.
http://www.damascuscitizensforsustainability.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Hancock4.pdf
City of Fitchburg Technical Assistance Grant (TAG)
October 2013-October 2014
GSI conducts CRDS survey of public roadways in Fitchburg, Massachusetts
https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/tag/PrjHome.rdm?prj=530&btn=Search
Research Project CH4 Measurements Manhattan, NY
2012-2015
A rapid method for measuring area methane emissions: an application in Manhattan, New York, USA
GSI collaborated with Professor Mark Arend Phd, City College of NY and Bryce Payne Jr. Phd. on method to measure methane flux from the borough of Manhattan, NY
Research Project: Natural Gas Pipeline Leaks Across Washington, DC
2012-2014
GSI collaboration with Professor Rob Jackson Phd of Stanford, University and professor Nathan Phillips Phd. of Boston University that mapped natural gas leak throughout the District of Columbia utilizing cavity ringdown spectrometer technology (CRDS). Published Environmental Science & Technology June 2014.
Research Project: Mapping Urban Pipeline Leaks – Methane leaks Across Boston, Ma
2011-2012
GSI collaboration with Professor Rob Jackson Phd of Stanford, University and professor Nathan Phillips Phd. of Boston University that mapped natural gas leak throughout Boston, Massachusetts utilizing cavity ringdown spectrometer technology (CRDS). Published Environmental Pollution December 2012.
Silver Spring Maryland Gas Leak Tree Project
October 2011
Assist citizens in Silver Spring, Maryland with natural gas leak problems.
Commonwealth Avenue Mall Association Tree Protection
September 2010
GSI conducts natural gas leak survey identifying trees damaged by natural gas leaks along Boston’s premier street. The survey leads to the replacement of the leaking gas line protecting over 100 significant trees.
Expert Witness
2010 – ongoing
GSI is the expert witness for communities in MA seeking damages to public shade trees from natural gas leakage from distribution pipelines. GSI documented gas leaks that have migrated to the root zones of trees in the Massachusetts communities of Brookline, Hingham, Milton and Saugus. GSI documented hundreds of trees that were suffering damages by known leaking gas pipes.
GSI provides general consulting on incidents nationwide in relation to fugitive methane, procedures – best practices relating to assessing natural gas leakage and government compliance of Department of Transportation pipeline safety regulations.
