After receiving rubber stamp approval from PHMSA (Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration), Enbridge can begin operating their compressor station. This decision comes nearly three months after Enbridge was forced to shut down the compressor after they had two systems failures. PHMSA did a review of the failures and although they did not state a reason as two what caused the failures, they are allowing operation to continue. Please be aware as this means that Enbridge will be releasing gas into the community throughout the week.

The Boston Herald - Weymouth natural gas compressor will vent gas into the community during its first week of operations (link)

Go for a stroll in King Coves Park to see all the elves we have on display! Help us get to 310 elves by the end of the month. Thanks to WBZ News Radio for covering this story. You can read more below.

WBZ News Radio - "Elf Effigies" Set Up By Weymouth Compressor Station Opponents (link)

So much has happened over the past week, we are not sure where to begin. We always hesitate to overload you, but there is some very important information that we need to give you.

We want you to know--in case you have not already heard--that the investigation into the two accidents is supposedly complete. We found out about this on the afternoon before Thanksgiving. It was our November surprise! And very typical of the way Enbridge treats our community with such disrespect.

The two-day BACT appeal with MassDEP and Algonquin (Enbridge) concluded today. This is the appeal that the Town of Weymouth just dropped on October 30th--much to the surprise of their municipal partners and FRRACS.

Remember all of those trees along the roadway by the North Parcel that Enbridge tore down last year? Well, they believe they are not going to put them back up. Guess again!

Thanks to Board member Robert for working with Sen. O'Connor's office. And many thanks to Sen. O'Connor and the delegation for following up on this. Taxpayer money!

We are marking the (second) start-up of the Weymouth compressor station by inviting people to create or decorate an Elf effigy to be placed at Kings Cove Park, 82 Bridge Street, Weymouth, beginning on December 1, 2020.

After receiving the OK from PHSMA (Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration) to begin operation, Enbridge stated that they’d place the compressor into service on December 1. Their startup date has since been delayed, though we don’t know until when.

Late in the day on Wednesday, as folks we’re heading into a holiday weekend, we received news that Enbridge was given the green light to turn on their compressor station. We are a bit tired of the loathsome games that Enbridge and their federal agency enablers like to play. You know--let's save some crappy news for a holiday or holiday eve so that we can show those little know-nothings in Weymouth who's boss!

WBUR - Feds Give Weymouth Compressor Station Approval To Start Up (link)

We were glad to sign on to the Massachusetts Rivers Alliance letter calling on the Massachusetts State Senate to pass the sewage notification bill which passed the House unanimously in July.

The public should know when sewage spills into our waterways.

We are hopeful that Senator Patrick O'Connor, State Senator John F. Keenan and State Senator Walter F. Timilty can help get this important bill passed this session.

Many thanks to the School Committee and the Town Council for taking the issue of safety and risk very, very seriously. While we are not interested in terrifying people, we must be acutely aware of the health and safety risks that this compressor, should it become operational in the next few weeks, presents for us a community.

If you have the time to watch the School Committee meeting of 11-19-2020, go to 3:05:59 to hear the conversation regarding schools and the compressor station.

For your reading pleasure, Campers. The executive session minutes from October 28 that concern the Town selling out to Enbridge for 30 pieces of silver... and due to lack of conviction and political will.

Alice Arena recently joined Friends of Blue Hills for their lecture series to talk about the compressor station and it’s impact on the ongoing climate crisis.

Many thanks to the Friends of Blue Hills for inviting FRRACS to speak! You can watch the full presentation here

The compressor station issue was highlighted in The Environmental Eagle, the Sustainability Newsletter of Boston College. Dr. Landrigan, Director of the Boston College Global Observatory on Pollution and Health, raises concerns about the risks that the compressor station poses. Dr. Landrigan served as one of our expert witnesses during our appeal of Enbridge’s air quality plan approval. You can read the full article below.

A recent investigative article in the New York Times shows how FTI Consulting has worked with the fossil fuel industry and the utilities to infiltrate groups like ours to disrupt our work to prevent more fossil fuel extraction and usage. This article, from WBUR, is extremely troubling in light of the NYT article.

We had a rather difficult monthly meeting last night, but in the midst of all of it we began to reflect on all that we have accomplished together in the almost six years of this fight. Member Andrea said, "Can you write that down?"

We thought that this is a good time to stop for a moment and reflect on what this fight has been about and what YOU, our dear Member, have done.

FRRACS talks with Quincy Cable's Joe Catalano about the latest on the compressor station.

Desmog - Massachusetts Locals Accuse Town Mayor Of ‘Colluding’ With Enbridge Over Controversial Natural Gas Project (link)

Collusion. A word that has seen a lot use in the past few years, eh, Campers? Why do we use it? There is a timeline that includes the Town's refusal to investigate dragging contaminated soils out of the parcel and onto the roadways, their refusal to demand that Enbridge adhere to Covid protocols, dragging their feet on the placement of the air quality monitor so that no baseline numbers will be available before the compressor goes online, and a little nuisance lawsuit brought by Enbridge against FRRACS and the Town that kept getting kicked down the road until Enbridge suddenly withdrew its own suit in mid October.

The Quincy City Council will be discussing Quincy's opposition to the compressor station at their meeting tonight. We would like to recognize and thank the City of Quincy for their continued support of the residents of the Basin--be they from Quincy, Weymouth, or Braintree. The City will be joining FRRACS on our testimony before the DEP late this month. If you are a Quincy resident, be sure to tune in! And thank your City Councilors!

Senators Markey and Warren have sent another letter to FERC, urging the agency to revoke authorization for the Weymouth Compressor, citing safety concerns. Many thanks to our Senators for their continued opposition to this project.

To access the press release for the statement, click here. To access the Senators’ letter to FERC, click here.