Title
Annual Update - Gas Distribution System
Body
The overall assessment of the gas system in Los Alamos County has not changed significantly since 2025, with the notable improvements of the system due to the completion of the Elk Ridge gas system replacement project, and now the upgrades being undertaken with the Trinity Dr. road and utilities upgrade project.
The restructuring of the GWS division to include a dedicated gas supervisor and crew has resulted in continued improvement to O&M work flows and realizing O&M goals each quarter.
The Los Alamos County gas distribution system is a very good system with ample capacity to serve the community and is generally in very good shape. DPU has invested in the system to address both capacity and age/condition issues over the past 25 years. There are, however, still some condition issues that need constant vigilance and continued commitment to resolving. Notably, isolated steel sections that are not known occasionally surface periodically and these require immediate attention to replace. Another condition issue is related to an early version of plastic pipe used in gas systems called Adyl-A pipe. This early plastic pipe becomes brittle over time and with use, and requires very careful handling when found, and is difficult to work with during repairs or when a new tap needs to be made on it.
One of the greatest set of challenges to the operation that occurred this year was related to the “virtual pipeline” delivery of CNG during the NMGC shutdown of the transmission line to Los Alamos to perform hydrostatic testing. The much higher level of odorant in the delivered gas resulted in a tremendous number of crew callouts when customers smelled gas. Many of the callouts were the result of pressure regulator fluctuations that vented very small amounts of gas at the meter, but many were the result of faulty and leaking appliances that require attention from the residents. There were also numerous pipe-fitting leaks found on both the customer, and the DPU side of the meter.
Some of the leaks found on the DPU side of the meter by the GWS gas crews required significant work to resolve on customer property. These leaks have been documented and will go into the report record to be submitted to the PRC Pipeline Safety Bureau.
Another set of challenges faced by GWS have been related to third-party damage to steel service lines in White Rock by the Atomic Fiber installation contractor. Each incident causes a major disruption to crew work flows and time because the repairs required significant work and overtime for numerous crew members working overnight to isolate the damaged pipe and perform repairs. The gas system in White Rock operates at nominally 60 psi, creating a very critical situation when gas is released through a damaged steel pipe. The pipe cannot be “squeezed off” as it can be on plastic lines, and much care has to be taken to secure the immediate area and avoid creating any sparks during the dangerous work to access the tap at the main. The road must be cut and the main excavated to push the line stopper down into the tap. As of October 1, there have been three line hit incidents. A meeting with the project team had to be called to confront the issues and develop a set of rules and procedures to address the problem and avoid further incidents.
Staff development continued in 2026, with the promotion of Victor Trujillo to Pipefitter from Apprentice II upon successfully passing his CID gas fitter exams and successfully completing his apprenticeship within the GWS gas crew program. This is significant because GWS saw the retirement of long-time Senior Pipefitter, David Rodriguez. Mr. Rodriguez had a long career with DPU and had a wealth of knowledge and expertise across a wide spectrum of the operation. GWS is hoping to promote one or two more crew members to Pipefitter in 2027.
Attached to this staff report is the Gas Distribution Compliance Summary.
Attachments
A - Annual Presentation on Gas Distribution System
B - Gas Distribution Compliance Summary