City Councilor Alicia Bowman reported that on December 9, National Grid spoke on the status of gas infrastructure repairs in Newton at a Public Facilities Committee of Newton’s City Council. Here’s what she said: “There are 305 miles of gas main in Newton with 78% of these pipes classified as leak prone. Newton had over 900 leaks in 2019 of which 209 were Level 1 (most dangerous).

It is important to recognize that all gas leaks are dangerous especially when we consider the impact on the environment including air quality, killing trees and the release of methane gas. I would like to thank Mothers Out Front, Green Newton and 350.org Newton and others who have kept the issue of gas leaks and the need to transition to 100% renewable energy in the spotlight. Their advocacy has been invaluable.

Newton’s Climate Action Plan calls for the city to be carbon neutral by 2050. This will not happen unless we transition away from gas starting ASAP. Now is the time to create a plan that allow us to transition to renewables while fixing the worst of the leaks. The video is here and starts about 15:00 National Grid reviews questions that were submitted prior to the meeting. The slides from the meeting are here at the end of the PF report.”