Questions & answers
Route planning
Which factors have to be considered when planning the route of the pipeline? Where exactly will the OPAL run? Here you will find a map of the route and the reasons why it cannot always take the most direct route.
How is a route like this even planned?
Long-distance pipelines do not take the shortest route possible. Rather, they follow the route which best meets the requirements of the population and the environment. The planning for a gas pipeline route takes into consideration ecologically sensitive areas and infrastructure elements such as transport paths and built-up areas, as well as the supply security of the region concerned. The route is also determined in a dialogue between the authorities and the building contractors. After the initial detailed planning has been carried out, discussions are held with the land owners and the required rights of way are obtained.
The plans also take into account the landscape conditions. For example, the working strip in a forest is narrower than in open spaces. The pipeline itself runs at least a meter underground.
How is the pipeline route decided?
The pipeline route is determined in a dialogue with the relevant authorities during the regional planning procedure. After the initial detailed planning has been carried out, discussions are held with the land owners and the required rights of way are obtained.
The regional planning procedure is conducted solely with the authorities. It is not until the subsequent planning approval process that the plans are made publicly known. During this process residents and communities can express their reservations and requests for changes.
If pipelines don’t take the shortest route, but the most suitable route for the people and the environment, why does the OPAL go by residential areas in several places?
The route of the OPAL meets the objectives of land use planning and regional planning as regards bundling pipeline routes. After construction the working strip is recultivated and plants are sown so that there are no long-term adverse effects. The operation of the pipeline itself is neither visible nor audible. In accordance with the legal and technical requirements of the Energy Management Act (Energiewirtschaftsgesetz), the Ordinance Regulating High Pressure Gas Pipelines and the rules and regulations of the German Technical and Scientific Association for Gas and Water (DVGW), the construction of gas high pressure pipelines in populated areas is permitted as long as the distance to the buildings is bigger than the width of the pipeline’s protective strip – five meters left and right of the route axis. All the legal requirements were complied with during the planning of the OPAL pipeline route.
