Los Alamos County staff gave the Utilities Board an annual update on the county gas distribution system on Oct. 1, reporting recent capital work, compliance activity and progress on the Elk Ridge third-party connection project.

Clay (last name redacted in the transcript), the county’s gas system lead, told the board the county operates separate gas systems for the town site and White Rock: the town-site trunk runs at about 100 psi for major mains (approximately 15 miles) with the remainder of distribution at 20 psi (about 97 miles), while White Rock’s system is a 60-psi design with about 26 miles of piping.

Major projects and repairs: Staff reviewed three recent local projects. A comprehensive replacement and standardization of vintage lines along DP Road removed a tangled mix of old pipes and reduced operational complexity. A separate, unplanned Court Street replacement followed discovery of a deep, isolated steel line that had been patched in prior decades; staff said the isolated steel had no documented cathodic protection and required a full replacement. The third project, Elk Ridge, is a multi-stage third-party development where county crews are installing mains and will later bring meter manifolds and meter sets online for more than 80 residences.

Safety, compliance and operations: Staff said the department has dedicated a gas crew and supervisor to ensure regular, required activities — pipeline patrol, leak surveys, cathodic-protection monitoring and recordkeeping — are maintained under the state Public Regulation Commission (PRC) rules. Staff reported about 10 leaks repaired in the period and more gas-locate activity during the DP Road work. Records for the system have been consolidated into GIS and Energy World Net to improve institutional memory.

Elk Ridge hookups and inspections: County staff described coordination challenges at Elk Ridge as contractors move from mains to individual home connections. Because some existing home piping and appliances are not code‑compliant, the state-inspected pressure tests required before connections may reveal plumbing or appliance defects that residents must fix. Cartwright Plumbing and state inspectors will observe the required pressure tests; the state’s inspection capacity and scheduling were cited as constraints that could push the final connection work into next spring. Staff said the county will take ownership of the new mains and meter installations after the project is completed and will operate the system going forward.

Resident concerns raised at the meeting: During public comment a resident of Elk Ridge said a planned riser for a double-meter manifold would sit close to parking and pedestrian areas at Unit 310 and asked the county to move the riser to a less exposed location. The resident also said a rumor had emerged that homeowners will face an $800–$1,000 fee for each hook-up; staff did not confirm a mandatory homeowner charge during the meeting and said permit, inspection and plumber arrangements are being coordinated with the developer and prime contractor.

Asset condition and cost control: Staff reviewed hydrocarbon-era legacy issues and said record consolidation and regular inspection programs have substantially reduced unknowns. They noted a small number of remaining undocumented steel service sections that occasionally require targeted excavation and replacement. Cathodic protection work and meter replacements are ongoing. Staff said the DP Road cleanup upsized capacity to support planned development on the south side of the corridor.

Next steps and timing: Staff expects to continue monthly inspections and leak surveys; if the Elk Ridge project must pause for winter weather, crews will preserve existing service for customers and schedule pressure-testing and meter conversion when the state inspection capacity is available. The department will provide ongoing inspection reports and project updates ahead of the next budget cycle to incorporate any cost- or staffing changes.

No formal decisions were made by the board during the presentation; the meeting moved from the gas update to the board’s annual self‑evaluation process.