ST. GEORGE — In order to answer a growing demand for natural gas triggered by the community’s continuing growth, Dominion Energy began work on a 7-mile long pipeline Monday.
According to the project’s website, the feeder line, which is a large, steel pipeline that supplies smaller main and individual service lines, will run along Red Hills Parkway to 450 North and connect with an existing line at 3050 East.
Phases of construction along the roadway will require temporary lane and road closures. Personal driveways and access points to side streets may also be blocked during excavation with plates being placed over trenches to maintain access.
The outer eastbound lane on the segment of Red Hills Parkway just east of the Bluff Street intersection has already been closed off to traffic to accommodate heavy equipment and personnel preparing for construction work.
The St. George Police Department posted on Facebook that Dominion Energy personnel will also be working in the area of 450 North and 3050 East over the next two weeks and ask motorists for their patience.
“Any changes in traffic or access will be kept to a minimum and will be as brief as possible,” the website states.
Multiple crews will be working simultaneously along the pipeline’s route and may work overnight and during the weekend as necessary. Work officially began Monday and is expected to finish within the year.
Dominion Energy deems the project necessary due to the growing demand for natural gas in the community while also improving their overall delivery system. It will also supply natural gas to St. George for electrical generation through the city’s Energy Service Department.
The St. George Expansion Project has been in the works for over a year, with Dominion Energy proposing to run over a mile of the pipeline through the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve in Fall 2018 at the city of St. George’s request. While running it through the reserve would have allowed a more direct route, the committees that oversee the management and maintenance of the reserve shot down the proposal.
The potential impacts to the reserve, which include a permanent 30-foot right of way for pipeline maintenance, were considered too disruptive to the area which serves as a protected Mojave desert tortoise habitat.
Questions for Dominion Energy can be taken at 801-234-5521 or by email.
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