Your rates dollars at work: pipeline reinforces service to Clarkston area
Since mid-July Avista contract crews have been working on a 2.8-mile natural gas line extension in the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley that will help reinforce gas service to Avista customers in the Clarkston area.
The new six-inch steel high pressure natural gas line was installed on the Clarkston, Wash., side of the Snake River and is fed through an existing line from Lewiston, Idaho. In early December the line underwent a successful pressure test and is now in service, providing homes and businesses with winter heat.
There a still a few asphalt patches that will be spruced up along the project corridor, but that should be wrapped up shortly.
Employees and contractors reported that customers in the area have been wonderful to work with and talk to about the project.
An unexpected benefit of the project to customers and the public came in the form of safety lighting on the Greenbelt Trail, a popular recreation area, where the new line was installed. In order to install the new pipeline, Avista needed to access land managed by the Army Corp of Engineers. As in-kind consideration in lieu of fees for conducting this project, Avista will install 46 lights along the trail from Chestnut Beach to Swallows Boat Ramp parking lot, at an approximate cost of $71,500. The new lights, to be installed later this year, will improve the safety of visitors who use the Greenbelt Trail.
Roughly 4,000 feet of conduit has already been installed for the lighting project that is expected to be complete around March 2012, but is dependent on winter.
This new natural gas pipeline is a great example of where your rates dollars go – providing you safe, reliable gas service.