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The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

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Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina's congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Mayorkas.

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Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Workers Fix Pipeline Leaks

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Thursday, April 13, 2017   

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- A new report shows that business is booming for those who work to stop leaks in natural gas pipelines across the country.

While cleaner air is good news for the environment, it might also be a boon to the job market, as these companies hire workers to perform methane mitigation. The report showed there are at least 60 mitigation companies working in 45 states, including Illinois.

Marcy Lowe, CEO of Datu Research, explained why it's important to stop these leaks.

"Methane is a very powerful greenhouse gas. Actually, in the short term, it's much more powerful than carbon dioxide,” Lowe said. "So, it's very, very important to try to keep it out of the atmosphere."

Critics of methane recapture claim this type of service comes with too high a price tag for natural gas suppliers. But Lowe said the savings from preventing the loss of product to the atmosphere nearly always outweigh the cost of stopping the leaks.

According to the report, unmitigated leaks cost an estimated $1.3 billion in lost natural gas each year. And recapturing those leaks creates job opportunities. Particularly in states with methane regulations, Lowe said the mitigation industry has experienced up to 30 percent employment growth, across a broad range of demographics.

"We found that they were offering a range of jobs with different experience needed, starting with just out of high school to highly skilled engineers and Ph.Ds,” she said.

The report said the majority of methane mitigation firms are small businesses founded in the last six years, that have high upward mobility with salaries ranging from $27,000 $100,000 per year.


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