Mid-America Pipeline builds respect on 400-mile loop.

While planning and preparation are fundamental to the construction of a major pipeline project, communication and cooperation are the keys to timely completion.

Mid-America Pipeline Co. is proof. The Tulsa-based company recently celebrated its 35th birthday by constructing a 400-mile expansion

The new 12-inch loop parallels two existing lines from the Four Corners producing region in San Juan County, NM, to Mid-America's Hobbs Station in Gaines County, TX. A 14-mile, 10-inch lateral also was constructed to receive deliveries direct from El Paso Natural Gas Co.'s new Chaco processing plant near Bloomfield, NM. The project increased the capacity on Mid-America's Four Corners System from 135,000 barrels per day of natural gas liquids to 185,000.

Because New Mexico is rich in cultural, historical and environmental resources, potential pitfalls and delays on the project involved more than standard private right-of-way acquisition obstacles. There were other considerations - karst topography, archaeological discoveries, pueblos, southwestern willow flycatchers, the puzzled sunflower and black-footed ferrets.

To establish a cooperative working environment, Mid-America decided from the onset to maintain an open, up-front, ongoing dialogue with all parties concerned. That list included the Bureau of Land Management, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Native American tribes, the State of New Mexico, public interest groups, neighborhood associations, environmental protection organizations and historical preservation offices. This openness cleared the way for trust and mutual respect as the project progressed, later earning the company several awards of commendation.

The project was launched at a scoping meeting with the Albuquerque office of the BLM on Dec. 19, 1994. A target completion date of Jan. 1, 1996, was established. To meet the deadline, all permitting, surveying, drafting, designing, right-of-way negotiating, biological, archaeological and air quality research had to be finished within a critical six-month window prior to construction in mid-July 1995.

Three issues soon emerged to demand priority status - the development of a thorough, ecologically sound Environmental Assessment for the BLM, concerns from residents located within a 20-mile corridor northeast of Albuquerque which contained the steepest terrain, highest concentration of archaeological sites and largest population center along the 400 miles, and compliance with Navajo Nation employment preference laws.

ENSR Consulting and Engineering of Fort Collins, CO, which had worked on other pipeline and fiber-optic projects in New Mexico, was chosen to develop the Environmental Assessment. Familiarity with New Mexico's wildlife, threatened and endangered species, and natural ecosystems was crucial in a project that crossed the Rio Grande, Rio Puerco and Pecos Rivers, Mescalero Sands and Las Huertas Creek.

While history from Mid-America's 1980 line installation in the state provided some advantages, the company sought input from as many sources as possible on environmental protection. Through a series of public and agency meetings, the plan of development was reviewed and amended several times to design the safest, least intrusive route.

The next item was the community of Placitas - a northern suburb of Albuquerque. Mid-America conducted several voluntary meetings with residents to provide education on construction, product characteristics, third-party damage prevention and One-Call services. Residents also were concerned about access to their homes during construction and preserving the natural landscape. To ease their apprehension, Mid-America restricted construction to Monday through Friday, made special efforts to control traffic and dust, and is assisting in the development of a 500-acre open space park that neighbors a subdivision in Placitas.

Ida Tallala, a founder of the High Desert Conservancy - an environmental organization based in Placitas - remarked, "We hoped to influence some of the decisions that were made which would be compatible to both parties. It was not them versus us, but groups seeking viable solutions which would not eliminate the howl of the coyote."

Native American tribes also presented certain conditions. Again, Mid-America stayed in continual contact with the Zia and Santa Ana Pueblo, Navajo Nation and the BIA to learn about traditional cultural policies. Of particular interest, the Navajo Nation has an employment preference law that requires contractors to give Navajo workers preference over other applicants when they present equal qualifications on a project that crosses Navajo land. Fourteen of the project's 414 miles fell on Navajo land.

Since Mid-America learned that some contractors in the past felt there was a shortage of qualified Navajo workers, the company voluntarily offered to train tribal members and provide lists of qualified personnel to contractors. Classes were taught at San Juan College by various industry contractors such as Willbros Butler Engineers, which provided design and survey services. More than 150 Navajo workers were trained in equipment operation, quality control, pipeline surveying, welding and truck driving. Thirty-eight were eventually employed on the pipeline loop.

More than 100 copies of the Environmental Assessment were released for public review on June 29 after several uneventful public meetings. No objections and few comments were received and the final notice-to-proceed was issued by the BLM on Aug. 17.

H.C. Price of Dallas was the successful bidder for mainline construction and American Pipe of Birmingham, AL provided the mainline pipe. The project was divided into two spreads and work began on Aug. 17. The 179-mile northern spread was scheduled for 66 days and the 235-mile southern spread for 78 days. The starting point was near Placitas, with right-of-way and ditching crews proceeding in opposite directions from there.

Mid-America retained archaeological staffing for monitoring during construction to keep their promises of cultural and environmental responsibility. The University of New Mexico's Office of Contract Archaeology handled the task, cataloging approximately 31,000 artifacts from more than 100 sites. Mid-America also engaged a contractor to develop a weed-management plan to prevent unwanted weeds from being scattered across the state during right-of-way clearing. It was the first plan of its kind used on a pipeline project.

Pipe had been arriving by rail to storage yards in Albuquerque and Vaughn since June 5 from American Steel in Birmingham, AL. L.B. Foster provided fusion-bonded epoxy coating to the X65 grade pipe, which was primarily 80 feet in length and 0.225-inch wall thickness. The thickness increased to as high as 0.375-inch for the 97 documented road, rail and river crossings. Mid-America stationed quality control inspectors at the mill, storage yards, stringing sites and during all phases of construction, in conjunction with Cleveland Inspection and other contracted safety consultants.

To inventory and track the pipe, Mid-America used an innovative technique. Each piece of pipe received a bar code at the mill which was scanned throughout the shipping process all the way to backfill. Not only did this make receipt and payment easier, all piping and weld joints received specific station locations, making future operations and maintenance activities more accessible. The information is stored in a database at Mid-America's headquarters in Tulsa.

Mid-America also decreased air emissions by as much as 40 percent on the Four Corners System by deactivating four pump stations and making modifications to 10 others. Dresser Engineering provided the design and Bowden Construction performed the upgrades.

Mainline construction averaged two to three miles per day on each spread and was completed Nov. 22, followed by hydrostatic testing and drying which ended Dec. 14. Line fill began the next day and was completed Dec. 19, 1995 - two weeks ahead of schedule.

For revegetation, Mid-America used a unique seed mix that researchers specifically developed to match the natural grass content on the Four Corners Loop project. Developers and home owners in New Mexico are now using the mix for their own use.

Last March, Mid-America received a certificate of appreciation from the Placitas High Desert Conservancy and the 1996 Cooperative Excellence Award from the Farmington District of the BLM for its stewardship and cooperative attitude.

In a letter to Mid-America, Mike Pool of the BLM wrote that the Cooperative Excellence award recognizes "The professional, deliberate and continuous effort Mid-America made to inventory and protect the resources, to find out what the agencies and the public wanted, to identify any concerns, and to address those concerns and requirements."