Bite prevention

Buddy Ives, Publisher

In 2005, ten Atmos Energy employees in Texas were attacked by dogs. This year, nine employees have already been bitten. The apparent increase in attacks this year led the Dallas-based company to participate in a call for safety during the National Dog Bite Prevention Week.
Unless you are a utility meter reader, the bite prevention week, no doubt, passed by unnoticed by most of you. So, for those of you who didn’t notice, it was the third week of May.
“The trend of increasing attacks is a great concern for us,” said Danny Johnson, Atmos Energy Mid-Tex Division meter reading director. “We want all our employees going home safely at night, and we want dogs to remain safely at home as the family pet.”
According to national statistics from the Centers for Disease Control:

• More than 4.7 million Americans are bitten by dogs every year.
• Approximately 12 fatalities annually are linked to dog attacks.
• The insurance industry pays out nearly $1 billion annually for dog bite injuries.

Certainly Atmos and other utility companies would like to see the program extend longer than a week.
As part of bite prevention week, Atmos encouraged its customers to:

• Make sure utility meters can be accessed without disturbing their dog.
• Ensure dogs are restrained or confined to their yard.
• Keep rabies shots up to date.

In an attempt to reduce violent encounters, the company’s Mid-Tex meter readers have started carrying a new device. It’s the “Bite Terminator” system, which is similar to a quick release umbrella. It confuses the attacking dog, blocks its vision and gives the reader a few extra seconds to escape.
Another preventive measure is the use of automatic meter reading. But it isn’t available in all locations.
Long distance agreement. Paraguay’s President Nicanor Duarte agrees with his Uruguayan and Bolivian counterparts, Tabare Vazquez and Evo Morales, that a natural gas pipeline should be built connecting the three countries, local press reported.
The leaders met in Paraguay’s capital Asunción to discuss energy integration amongst other issues. As discussed, the pipeline will run 500 mi from Bolivia’s gas-rich Tarija department to Puerto Casado on the shores of the Paraguay River, 370 mi north of Paraguay’s capital Asuncion. From there, the line would extend south to Ciudad del Este, 220 mi from the capital, where it would cross the international bridge shared with Brazil toward Río Grande do Sul state and onward to Uruguay, the paper reported.
Now that an agreement has been reached, a technical commission will begin drafting an agreement. Provided the commission doesn’t slow the process, the pipeline could begin operations in 2-4 years.
Alaskan gas? Alaska Gov. Frank Murkowski has unveiled his administration’s long-awaited natural gas pipeline contract. However, the status of the state’s deal with Alaska’s big three oil companies remains unclear.
Jim Clark, the governor’s chief of staff, has spear-headed two years of closed-door negotiations with BP, ConnocoPhillips and Exxon Mobil. But it has not been disclosed if any contract agreements were reached with the companies while the doors were closed.
The governor presented his tentative contract on the first day of a special session of the state legislature. The governor proposes replacing the state’s oil and gas production tax with a 20% tax on oil company profits and an assortment of tax credits and write-offs. He says the companies would only go along with a gas line deal if the state agreed to lock the oil tax terms into the gas pipeline contract for 30 years.
The plan is to give the companies “certainty” on the future taxes before they commit to spending some $25 billion on a transportation project to move North Slope natural gas to the Lower 48. It does appear to be clear that the oil companies won’t endorse the contract absent the new oil tax. Experience says the gas will remain on the North Slope.
Something to ponder. The next time you are fueling your gas guzzling compact car you might ponder the following. It will keep your mind off the $3.00 gasoline. Why does Hawaii have an interstate highway system?