Sabal Trail now drilling under Suwannee and 5 other rivers and creeks 2017-01-03

Sabal Trail is drilling pilot holes under the Tallapoosa River in Alabama and the Withlacoochee (south) River in Florida, according to its latest biweekly report filed today. HDD Construction (1 of 2) It’s already reaming a bigger hole under the Suwannee River in Florida and the Chattahoochee River at the Alabama-Georgia border, as well under Hillabee Creek and State Highway 22 in Alabama. Hillabee Creek seems to keep taking longer.

In Georgia, drilling is completed under Earth Dam, the Flint River, the Ochlockonee River, and the Withlacoochee River, and in Florida under the Santa Fe River, Shingle Creek, and Dyer Blvd.

Drilling has not started under the Norfolk Southern railroad and Uchee Creek in Alabama, nor under Hanahatchee Creek in Georgia, nor under US 27, Interstate 4, or Deerfield HDD in Florida. US 27 and I-4 seem to keep getting delayed.

Here’s a spreadsheet of horizontal directional drillings (HDD) activities in Sabal Trail’s biweekly reports since they started construction.

pilot hole
reaming
2016-08-22--2016-09-04
Next period
2016-09-05--2016-09-18
Next Period
2016-09-19--2016-10-02
Next Period
2016-10-03--2016-10-16
Next Period
2016-10-17--2016-10-30
Next Period
2016-10-31--2016-11-13
Next Period
2016-11-14--2016-11-27
Next Period
2016-11-28--2016-12-11
Next Period
2016-12-12–2016-12-25
Next Period
Hillabee Creek HDD3 weeks6 weeksNone.Clear and grade. Prepare pad. Set-up the rig and begin pilot hole.Completed set-up of rig.Install pilot hole and begin reaming.Began pilot hole installation.Complete pilot hole and begin reaming.Completed pilot hole installation and began reaming.Complete reaming and prepare for pullback.Continued reaming.Continued reaming.Continued reamingContinue reaming
State Highway 22 HDD3 weeks3+ weeksStarted clearing and grading the pad.Set-up the rig and began pilot hole/reaming activities.Completed clearing and began pad prep.Set-up the rig and begin pilot hole/reaming activities.Completed pad preparation.None.Began pilot hole installation.Complete pilot hole and begin reaming.Completed pilot hole installation and began reaming.Complete reaming and prepare for pullback.Continued reaming.Continued reaming.Continued reamingContinue reaming
Tallapoosa River HDD5 weeksClearing and pad preparation.Mobilize and set-up rig.Set up rig and began pilot hole installation.Complete pilot hole installation and begin reaming.Began pilot hole installation.Complete pilot hole installation and begin reaming.Continued pilot hole installation.Complete pilot hole installation and begin reaming.
Norfolk Southern HDDNone.
None.None.None.
Uchee Creek HDDNone.None.None.None.
Chattahoochee River HDDClearing and pad preparation.Complete clearing and pad preparation.Completed clearing and pad preparation.None.Completed clearing and pad preparation.None.None.Set up rig and begin pilot hole installation.Set up rig, completed pilot hole installation, and began reaming.Continue reaming.
Hannahatchee Creek HDDBegan clearing.Complete clearing, began pad preparation, and set-up rig.Clearing and pad preparation.Mobilize rig.Completed pad preparation.None.None.None.None.None.
Earth Dam HDD3 weeks2 weeksNone.Begin clearing and pad preparation.Clearing and pad preparation.Mobilize rig.Set up rig and began pilot hole installation.Complete pilot hole and begin reamingCompleted installation.Completed.Completed.Completed.
Flint River HDD2 weeks3 weeksCleared and graded the pad. Set-up the rig.Begin pilot hole/reaming activities.Completed pilot hole and began reaming activities.Continue reaming activities.Completed reaming activities and prepared for pullback activities.Complete installation.Continued pullback activities.Complete installation.Completed pullback activities and demobilized rig.Completed.Completed.Completed.Completed.Completed.
Ochlockonnee River HDD2 weeks5 weeksCleared and graded the pad. Set-up the rig. Started pilot hole.Begin pilot hole/reaming activities.Completed pilot hole and began reaming activities.Continue reaming activities and prepare for pullback activities.Continued reaming activities.Complete reaming activities and prepare for pullback activities.Continued reaming activities.Complete reaming activities and prepare for pullback activities.Completed pullback activities.Demobilize rig.Demobilized rig.Completed.Completed.Completed.
State Highway 84 and Withlacoochee River HDD3 weeks5 weeksCompleted pad. Set up rig and began pilot hole. Complete pilot hole and begin reaming activities.Completed pilot hole and began reaming.Complete reaming activities and prepare for pullback.Continued reaming operations.Continue reaming operations.Continued reaming operations.Complete reaming/swabbing operations and prepare for pullback activities.Completed installation.Demobilize rig.Completed.Completed.
Suwannee River HDDNone.Begin clearing and pad preparation.Began clearing and pad preparation.Mobilize rig.Completed preparing site for rig to be mobilized.Mobilize rig and begin pilot hole installation.Began pilot hole installation.Continue pilot hole installation.Completed pilot hole installation and began Reaming.Continue reaming.
Santa Fe River HDD2 weeks5 weeksNone.Conduct clearing and grading.Cleared and graded the pad. Set-up the rig. Started pilot hole.Complete clearing and grading. Set-up the rig. Begin pilot hole/reaming activities.Completed clearing and grading and pad preparation.Set-up the rig and begin pilot hole/reaming activities.Completed pilot hole and began reaming.Continue reaming operations.Continued reaming.Complete reaming operations and prepare for pullback.Completed reaming/swabbing operations and prepared for pullback activities.Complete pullback activities.Completed reaming/swabbing operations and prepared for pullback activities.Complete pullback activities.Completed pullback and demobilized rig.Completed.
US Highway 27 HDDNone.Conduct clearing, grading, stringing and welding.`Completed clearing and grading. Started stringing and welding pipe.Complete stringing, welding, and coating.Began pad preparation. Continued welding and coating pipe.Complete welding and coating pipe.Completed pad preparation.None.None.Evaluate rig mobilization options.None.Evaluate rig mobilization options.None.Evaluate rig mobilization options.None.Evaluate rig mobilization options.
Toll Road 429 HDD2 weeks2 weeksBegan clearingComplete clearing and begin pad preparation.Completed clearing and began pad preparation.Complete pad preparation.Completed pad preparation.Evaluate rig mobilization options.Finished pad preparation.Mobilize rig and begin pilot hole installation.Set up rig and completed pilot hole installation.Complete reaming and prepare for pullback.Completed reaming and pullback activities and demobilized rig.Completed.
Interstate 4 HDDNone.Begin clearing.Began clearing.Complete clearing and begin pad preparation.Completed clearing and pad preparationEvaluate rig mobilization options.None.Evaluate rig mobilization options.None.Evaluate rig mobilization options.None.Evaluate rig mobilization options.
Withlacoochee (south) River HDDNone.None.None.None.None.Mobilize and set up rig.Mobilize and set up rig.Begin pilot hole installation.
Shingle Creek HDD2 weeks3 weeksCleaning and prep.Continue cleaning and prep.Started clearing and prep.Continue clearing and prep. Conduct stringing and welding.Continued clearing and prep. Started stringing and welding pipe.Complete clearing and grading. Complete stringing, welding, and coating.Completed clearing and pad preparation.Set-up rig and being pilot hole.Completed pad preparation.Set-up rig and begin pilot hole and reaming.Completed pilot hole and began reaming.Complete reaming and prepare for pullback activities.Completed reaming and began swabbing activities.Prepare for pullback activities..Completed installation and demobilized rig.Completed.Completed.Completed.
Deerfield HDDNoneNoneNone.None.None.None.None.None.None.None.None.None.None.None.None.None.None.None.
Dyer Blvd HDD2 weeks2 weeksClearing and grading for HDD rig.Complete clearing and start setting-up of HDD rig.Completed clearing and grading for HDD rig. Began stringing on 9/14 Began welding the HDD pipe on 9/17.Continue welding, stringing, and testing of HDD pipe. Initiate coating.Completed stringing, welding, and coating.Completed stringing, welding, and coating.Set up rig, completed pilot hole, and began reaming. Continue reaming and prepare for pullback.Completed installationDemobilization of rig from site.Demobilized rig from site.None.None, completed.None, completed.Completed.Completed.Completed.Completed.

See for yourself in FERC Accession Number: 20170103-5079, “Sabal Trail Transmission, LLC submits its biweekly status report for the Sabal Trail Project under CP15-17.” Of course, like all Sabal Trail’s biweekly reports, this one was filed a week after the end of the period it reports.

Here’s a digitized map of the pipeline path, and here are Sabal Trail’s alignment maps. For example, the I-4 HDD site appears to be at 28.289633, -81.586857 just SW of Celebration, FL, on alignment map 1657-PL-DG-70197-489, less than 10 miles from the infamous Calypso Court sinkhole, as it skirts around Celebration, the town Disney built.

Here are addresses for reporting violations and other things you can do to help stop this boondoggle.

-jsq

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