A Public Service Announcement from FRRACS
/A PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT
What Does a Compressor Station Look Like, Really?
Dominion compressor station—Murrysville, PA
Picture of the auxiliary building and compressor building (background), April 16, 2020
Many of our members and allies have been watching with horror the recent construction at the North Parcel. Becky Haugh first sent pictures of the enormous beams and cross members of the compressor building to us a couple of weeks ago.
We may have been remiss over the past five years in not showing you what an actual compressor station looks like. We have said many times that the Parcel was too small for the station—a fact that Enbridge stated under oath during the Waterways Appeal. But just how big is a compressor station and what does it actually look like?
The Murrysville station pictured above is an example of a typical station. The large building is the compressor building, the shorter one is the auxiliary building, and there is much above ground piping. Other structures are things like an oil separator, backup generator buildings, and the blow down stack(s)--which is not visible in this picture.
In fact, below is Enbridge’s own rendition of a compressor station set-up. Missing, again, is the blow down stack. In our case, this stack will be 60 feet tall and be placed in between the compressor building and the MWRA pumping station. It will be approximately level with the bridge and, therefore, will spew its contents on unsuspecting motorists.
Enbridge rendition of a typical compressor station
Contrast both of the above buildings with Spectra’s (Enbridge’s) design that kept popping up in the Patriot Ledger until we all finally got them to stop using it for the sake of journalistic purity.
Spectra’s (Enbridge’s) original rendition of the Weymouth compressor station. AKA—The Library.
It is almost humorous to look at the above picture now. It was NEVER possible, but was Enbridge’s little joke on the citizens of the Basin. We really hate being played for fools, don’t we, Campers?
During the course of the Wetlands appeal, Enbridge was forced to elevate the building to bring the base of the building up to the level of the park. This required an elevation of 19 feet on the gradient (above sea level), and they had to add many feet of gravel and raise the foundation of the building to get to that height. So the typical five story compressor building that we see in all of the pictures of real compressor stations looks even bigger on their undersized property with this required elevation.
Another point on the size of the buildings: the buildings had to be raised to avoid being flooded. It was Spectra/Enbridge's poor choice of a location that required that change in design. Who would choose to place a compressor station where it would risk the snapping of the above ground pipes in a hurricane, nor'easter, or bombogenesis where water overtops the already eroding coastal banks, carrying with it objects like huge tree limbs or lumber from broken docks, etc.? The engineer (and we use that term lightly) who designed it never planned for that and admitted such under oath at the DEP Waterways appeal. The Energy Facilities Siting Board had warned them not to build on the North Parcel.
During the course of the many appeals, lawsuits, etc., the Town of Weymouth was able to force Enbridge to install better sound insulation. (Many thanks to the Town for forcing Enbridge to re-do the sound testing after discovering that it was inadequate and flat out wrong.) However, that did not enlarge the size of the building that was already planned. It only helps the neighborhoods to lower the noise level that this abomination will produce 24/7. Becky Haugh, the only person in the Town government to do a tour of an actual, operating compressor station in Oxford, CT, reports that sound suppressing equipment had to be worn outside of the Oxford compressor station. What fun it will be to use our park if this compressor becomes operational!
Tennessee Gas compressor station, Charlton, MA
The Charlton compressor station is a prime example of an operating station in Massachusetts. Originally built with three turbines totaling 6000 HP, it was built to hold more than three turbines. Enbridge’s compressor building was built to hold as many as five turbines, although at 7700 HP it will hold only one (perhaps two, with one as a backup) turbine at this time. The buildings are “overbuilt” so that the operators may expand at any time without going through the full Federal Energy Regulatory Commission process. For instance, in the case of Charlton, in 2006 this station was upgraded to 12,550 HP by removing the three original turbines and putting two 6,275 HP turbines in their place. This type of upgrading also requires very large, very tall buildings. As more turbines and HP is added along the way, larger exhaust systems, regenerative emissions systems, and air handling systems must also be added to keep the heat of the operating turbines in check. Our member Mike Lang has followed the plans for this compressor station from the very beginnings and notes the size of the building and warns that Enbridge will be back to the trough soon with plans for expansion.
We hope that this Public Service Announcement has helped to answer any questions you might have had as to the size of the buildings. We wanted to clear up any misconception that the building might have looked more like “The Library” at any given time. Compressor Stations are compressor stations, no matter where they are placed.
TO ACCESS A PDF VERSION OF THIS PSA, CLICK HERE.