Bergen Loop

Michels Pipeline, Inc. was contracted to install 0.6 miles of 42-inch concrete-coated pipe, install a launcher and receiver barrel, and complete a minor station rebuilding project. Michels Construction, Inc. installed 5,000 linear feet of sheet piles to combat unstable ground.

The pipe was installed in a 12-foot trench. It was crucial to keep the tide within a designated level so pipe didn’t drag on the ground, while also ensuring buoyancy units floating the pipe didn’t get caught on the cross members of the sheeting. Each joint of the pipe weighed 42,000 pounds and had to be floated across the wetland.

The Bergen Loop is part of the Rivervale South to Market project, which increases gas delivery by 190 million cubic feet per day, enough additional natural gas to meet the needs of about a million homes. The region’s conversion of oil to natural gas has led to improvements in air quality.