Pipeline plans moving forward
By Scott Ishikawa
Advertiser Central O'ahu Writer
Friday is the deadline to comment on a draft environmental impact statement for a planned 13-mile Hawaiian Electric Co. underground oil pipeline from Campbell Industrial Park to the company's power plant in Pearl City.
Public comments on the draft EIS should be sent to Hawaiian Electric Co. Inc., Ken Fong, P.O. Box 2750, Honolulu, HI 96840. Copies of testimony should be submitted to the state Department of Transportation, Jadine Urasaki, acting harbors administrator, 79 S. Nimitz Highway, Honolulu HI 96813. The draft EIS for the HECO pipeline can be read at the main state library, and the 'Ewa Beach, Pearl City and Waipahu public libraries. Residents with questions about the pipeline project can leave their names and phone numbers with HECO. Call 543-5665.
HECO said the $27 million pipeline project will carry low-sulfur fuel oil to its Waiau power plant to convert into electricity. The company currently uses a Chevron pipeline to supply the Waiau generators, but the contract between the two companies expires at the end of 2004.
To comment
Construction on the pipeline could begin in fall 2003, with work to take about a year, HECO spokesman Bruce Benson said.
The pipeline would start from Kalaeloa and go through the 'Ewa plains, traveling mostly along the mauka side of Farrington Highway, then travel along the O'ahu Rail and Land Co. right-of-way in 'Ewa. It would continue alongside Pouhala Marsh in Waipahu and Leeward Community College in Pearl City before ending at the Waiau power plant.
Organizations such as the Sierra Club and Life of the Land say they oppose the project because they want the company to look at alternatives to fossil fuels and are concerned about potential leaks along the new pipeline. In May 1996, more than 38,000 gallons of crude oil spilled into Pearl Harbor from a ruptured Chevron pipeline.
"This pipeline is not an either/or option for us when it comes to looking at energy alternatives," Benson said. "This project is meant to replace an older pipeline. We are looking at other initiatives for renewable energy sour-ces."
The pipeline installation will go through residential neighborhoods in the Villages of Kapolei and West Loch Estates, with work in any given neighborhood lasting three to six weeks. Horizontal drilling methods will allow the company to lay pipes under roadways without the need for trenchwork, he said.
Benson said high-speed fiber-optic cables will be laid with the 8-inch insulated pipeline, so company officials can detect a leakage or blockage quickly.
"Gate valves will be controlled by pipeline monitors, so if there is a pressure fault someplace along the line it can instantly be shut off," he said.
The pipeline would be HECO's third and would give the utility a dedicated line to each of its three power plants. The company already has pipelines from Campbell Industrial Park to its Kahe Power Plant and from Iwilei to its downtown power plant. The new pipeline also would be the longest and most expensive, though HECO said it would not cause electricity rates to rise.
After the draft EIS comment period, the company will write up the final EIS, to be released this fall. Ultimately, HECO needs approval from the state Department of Transportation before work can begin.
Reach Scott Ishikawa at 535-2429 or sishikawa@honoluluadvertiser.com.
