Toccoa Awarded $8.43 Million Grant To Replace Aged Gas Lines; Sen. Ossoff Instrumental In Award

Toccoa has been awarded $8.43 million in grant funding to replace more than ten miles of aged and leak-prone gas distribution mains and service lines that are part of the Toccoa Natural Gas distribution system. 

At a press conference held Friday at Reflections at Lake Toccoa, Georgia’s senior United States Senator Jon Ossoff officially announced the award, which was part of $196 million in grants issued on Oct. 22 by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). 

Toccoa Mayor Gail Fry spoke at the press conference, calling the grant announcement a “historic day” for Toccoa, and talking about the city’s decision to recruit assistance from Ossoff in obtaining the grant

Ossoff made the official announcement, and commended city officials for their work.

He explained that the grant would mean mitigation of safety hazards, an improved quality of life for citizens, and increased energy security.

Toccoa Utilities Director Harry Scott spoke of the economic and employment impact of the grant for the community.

He talked about the timeline of the project, and stressed that the city would be making every effort to minimize disruptions.

He responded to questions from WNEG News regarding any safety concerns about the “leaky lines” that led to the grant.

Scott said the city would be applying for further grant funding through the program in order to complete two more projects.

Funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law of 2021, the  Natural Gas Distribution Infrastructure Safety and Modernization Grants, or NGDISM Grants, are earmarked to help modernize aging natural gas pipelines across the country. The replacement of identified pre-code steel and vintage plastic lines are being funded with federal resources to enhance safety, environmental initiatives and customer cost savings.

In this latest round of grant awards, which will support 60 natural gas pipe projects across 20 states, the City of Toccoa was awarded two separate grants, for a total of $8,433, to replace a 10.23 miles of leaking precode steel and vintage plastic distribution gas mains and services, for an estimated 7.79 metric ton reduction of methane gas emissions per year and the creation of 100 jobs. Toccoa was awarded the fourth-largest grant total this round, with the largest recipient in this round being Philadelphia Gas Works in Pennsylvania, which received nearly $40 million to replace 20.3 miles of cast iron piping over a five-year period. The project will create 60 jobs and annually reduce methane emissions by over 92 metric tons. The City of Richmond, Virginia received $15.73 million and the City of Kings Mountain, North Carolina received $9.6 million.

Ossoff spoke about the importance of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law authorized a nearly $1 billion investment over five years – or roughly $200 million per year – to modernize community-owned natural gas distribution pipes, helping lower energy costs for ratepayers, reduce methane pollution, and keep communities safe from pipeline failures. To date, PHMSA has awarded nearly $800 million across 227 projects in underserved rural and urban communities across 29 states since the program was created in 2022. Grant recipients are on track to repair, rehabilitate, or replace more than 1,000 miles of aging natural gas pipes and reduce nearly 1,000 metric tons of methane pollution, annually. 

 Other Georgia grant recipients through the life of the grant program include:

The City of Monroe, which received nearly $2 million to replace 4.34 miles of pre-code era steel distribution mains for an estimated 4.34 metric ton reduction of methane gas emissions per year and the creation of 30 jobs.

The City of Perry, which received $142,676 to replace 0.86 miles of bare steel pipelines and services and install new excess flow valves on all replacement services for an estimated 1.80 metric ton reduction of methane gas emissions per year and the creation of 6 jobs. 

The City of Thomasville, which received $74,200 to purchase leak detection equipment, GIS software and equipment. 

The City of Tifton, which received $868,826 to replace 3.67 miles of 4-inch and 2-inch mill-wrap steel natural gas distribution mains, 51 associated services, and 12 flanged steel gas valves for an estimated 3.90 metric ton reduction of methane gas emissions per year and the creation of 5 jobs. 

The City of Winder, which received $1,668,782 to replace 1.5 miles of pre-code, ineffectively coated, and leak prone pipe for an estimated 1.59 metric ton reduction of methane gas emissions per year and the creation of 12 jobs.