In a recent Baltimore Sun guest commentary entitled “Who’s to blame for Maryland’s rising utility bills,” Paul Pinsky, director of the Maryland Energy Association, writes about energy costs and lays blame for rising rates on Columbia Gas of Maryland’s pipeline replacement program, which is critical to the safety of our natural gas distribution system. To continue to provide safe, affordable and reliable service, utilities must invest in their systems to upgrade aging infrastructure, just as investments are made in bridges, roads and other infrastructure in our cities, towns and communities.

Pinsky is correct when he observes that “some types of older pipes may need upgrading to prevent leaks down the road.” However, he goes on to say that “the company also wants to replace significant amounts of newer, perfectly good pipes.”

To state it very clearly: Columbia Gas is not replacing perfectly good pipes. We never have, and we never will.

As mandated by the federal government, natural gas utilities implement a plan known as a DIMP — a Distribution Integrity Management Program. This program requires that natural gas companies gather detailed information on the design, operating conditions and environmental factors necessary to assess the threats and risks to the integrity of their pipelines. Simply put, we evaluate and rank the top risks to our system and develop accelerated programs to reduce that risk.

Corrosion on bare steel pipe is the leading risk, and Columbia Gas has aggressively been replacing that pipe with coated steel and state-of-the-art high-density polyethylene, which is a type of plastic that is strong, resistant to corrosion and can withstand the pressure of natural gas distribution systems.

Cast-iron pipes are also replaced with modern materials. Columbia Gas is proud to report that we eliminated all known cast iron pipes in our Maryland system by the end of 2020.

There is another type of pipe that we must responsibly seek to replace, and that is first-generation plastic, sometimes referred to as pre-1982 plastic pipe. As I mentioned, the determination of what pipe to replace and when to replace it is done through a rigorous process of risk analysis. Because of the brittle nature of this first-generation plastic pipe, it is prone to breakage. These lines are not “non-priority pipe that poses no risk of harm”. On the contrary, we have amplified this type of pipe in our replacement program precisely because it has been shown to contribute to system risk. As the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration has emphasized in multiple advisories to utilities in recent years, this first-generation plastic, installed between the 1960s and the early 1980s, has the potential for brittle-like cracking and needs to be replaced.

There is a notion that has been expressed recently that natural gas companies shouldn’t be replacing any of their underground facilities because gas use will be declining rapidly and will have a diminished role in Maryland going forward. The reality, however, is that the number of people reaching out to Columbia Gas asking to be added to our natural gas system continues to increase, and we consistently add new customers year over year. Furthermore, all Maryland gas utilities have added more than 17,500 natural gas customers to their systems over the last two years.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, on a statewide basis, natural gas local distribution companies serve over 43% of homes in Maryland, providing thermal heat to customers more affordably than electricity, oil or propane. Columbia Gas of Maryland, in fact, has a tool available on our website where Maryland residents can calculate the annual heating costs and water heating costs of natural gas, electric, propane and oil.

Columbia Gas proudly serves the energy needs of the residents of our Maryland service territory, and we are deeply committed to our mission of providing safe, reliable and affordable energy in the years to come. We believe that natural gas and the natural gas infrastructure will play a key role in an equitable energy future for all customers, and we will not waver in ensuring that we invest in that infrastructure safely.

Mark Kempic is the president and chief operating officer of Columbia Gas of Maryland.