Forest Society Opposes NEGME Pipeline

Concord, NH April 1, 2015—The Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests announced today that it is opposing the “New England Green Maple Express”, an above-ground pipeline proposed by a Quebec business consortium.

“The New England Green Maple Express represents an affront to the Granite State landscape that we all know and love,” said Jack Savage, spokesperson for the Forest Society.

The precise route of the pipeline is not yet known, but would originate in southern Quebec. From there it would trace a line north to south through more than 200 miles of New Hampshire, cross into Massachusetts, and terminate in suburban Boston.

Unlike other existing and proposed pipelines elsewhere in New Hampshire, the New England Green Maple Express is conceived as an overhead pipeline. If built, it’s unique design calls for it to be carried on a support structure reaching more than 100 feet high.

“This massive structure would be well above treeline, ruining treasured scenic views and fragmenting forest habitat,” Savage said.

The project is a partnership between the Federation Liberte Universal du Maple Export (FLUME) headquartered in Quebec, and PourMore, Inc., in the U.S., which has contracted with FLUME to build the pipeline. It would allow Quebec maple producers to cost-effectively export their surplus syrup to the New England market.

The pipeline itself would represent an engineering feat. According to a glossy brochure that began arriving in New Hampshire mailboxes recently, plans call for making the pipe higher at the Quebec end and lower at the Boston end, using gravity to advance the flow. Since the White Mountains stand between the source and the terminus, the overhead pipe would be “like a roller coaster, where the downhill sections create enough momentum to carry the flow up the uphill sections.” Thus the need for heights greater than 100 feet for portions of the line.

“With the advent of tubing used to extract and collect sap from maple trees, we have been considering this approach for some time,” said FLUME spokesperson Pierre Montblanc. “In essence, this is like a 200-plus mile mainline.”

The obvious challenge is to keep the product flowing, even during the cold nights of the sugaring season when the viscosity of cold syrup would cause the flow rate to fall below specifications,” Montblanc explained. “We believe we have come up with a somewhat ingenious solution. As everyone knows, to make maple syrup one starts with raw maple sap from the tree and evaporates it. As sap, it flows like water. Syrup, of course, flows more slowly, especially when cold.”

According to Montblanc, the New England Green Maple Express would be constructed as a giant reverse osmosis machine, reducing the water content of the sap as it flows through the pipe. As the product nears the syrup stage and the viscosity thickens, the pipe will be heated to complete the syrup making process. Hot syrup flows easily, so there will be no slow-down in the overall flow through the pipe.

“Plus, we can generate energy as a byproduct of the reverse osmosis process and use that to provide the heat we need to finish the syrup in the pipe,” Montblanc said. “It is perpetually self-sustaining. Very green.”

 In fact, according to Montblanc, FLUME is currently devising plans for a giant reservoir of sap on the Quebec end, created by building what they refer to as a “sugar dam” and flooding a large valley with millions of gallons of raw sap.

“By storing the raw sap in a reservoir, we can begin the evaporation process by using the sun,” said Montblanc. “It will be very natural. Very green.

“Also, as with any dam, we can control the flow as we wish. For example, we know during the days leading up to the Presidential Primary in New Hampshire that there will be many, many pancake breakfasts. Real maple syrup will be in great demand, and we will be in a position to supply.

We think we will displace sugarmakers using older, oil-fired evaporators in New England.  Ours is clean, low-carbon syrup. This will be good for the environment,” he said.

“This is Big Canadian Maple at its worst,” Savage countered, noting that Quebec produces 77 percent of the world’s supply of syrup. “The only thing green about it is the money Quebec wants to siphon away from homegrown sugarmakers by flooding the market with syrup subsidized with Canadian tax dollars. New Hampshire is a net exporter of maple syrup—if there is a demand for the Canadian stuff, it’s in the big cities of southern New England, not here, and our sugarmakers can’t even use the pipeline.”

Montblanc acknowledged that the pipeline would be for the exclusive use of FLUME. When confronted with the fact that American political candidates would likely prefer to “buy American” and use New Hampshire syrup, Montblanc waffled, saying “well, you know, the reality is that the syrup market is all part of one network, one market, and maple trees do not recognize international boundaries.”

Safety Concerns

At the terminus of the New England Green Maple Express line will be a giant storage tank for finished syrup. Among Boston residents with long memories, this raised concerns that there could be a repeat of the great Molasses catastrophe of January 15, 1919, when in Boston’s North End a tank holding 2.3 million gallons of molasses collapsed, sending waves of sticky goo down Commercial Street, killing 21, injuring 150 and causing extensive damage.

Early plans identify a “goo zone” all along the pipeline, representing homes and businesses that may be in danger should the pipe give way.

“Safety is at the forefront of our business,” insisted Montblanc. “We will put up warning sirens all along the pipe and at each end. Our motto is “If she’s going to blow, we’ll let you know.”

“With all due respect, these guys can’t even keep track of the syrup they keep in their own back yard,” said Savage, referring to the widely reported theft of 10,000 barrels of maple syrup worth $18 million from Quebec’s strategic Syrup Reserve.

The New England Green Maple Express will face permitting challenges similar to the now-infamous (and not yet approved) Keystone Pipeline. Federal agencies will likely take safety consideration into account.

Meanwhile local landowners and municipalities are expressing their own concerns about outside business interests potentially seeking to use the government’s power of eminent domain in order to site the project.

“We have no plans to use eminent domain,” Montblanc said. “We have every hope of coming to agreement with landowners along our route before we resort to eminent domain. And even then, we will be happy to buy everyone near the route a nice pizza. Extra cheese!"

“Our plan is to have this to be in service by the 2017 sugar season. Definitely by 2018. Perhaps 2019. Or maybe 2020.”

“If we don’t have this in place by the time of the Boston Summer Olympics in 2024,” warned Montblanc, “I can assure you there will be a maple syrup crisis. Prices will be high like steam through the roof. Everyday families will not be able to afford breakfast and little children will be very sad. We must build this pipe so the little children are not very sad.”

“All I can say is that we oppose this preposterous proposal as proposed,” Savage said. “It’s about protecting our way of life, especially on April1. We understand they'd like to get their product to market, but there's probably a less intrusive way to do that.”