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Report on purchased electrical energy, July 1, 1966, to Dec. 31, 1966

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Mr. ANDREWS. Has anybody complained to you about your operaon making a contribution to air pollution in this area?

Mr. RUBEL. We claim that we don't make a contribution to air pol

tion.

Mr. ANDREWS. I know you claim that, but what do others say? Mr. RUBEL. The Plant's contribution to air pollution is substantiy less than the average for similar plants. Presently, consideration being given to the use of a higher grade fuel oil to reduce the emisa of sulfur dioxide, an invisible substance, from the stacks. For eral years a premium-priced coal with low sulfur content has been I will continue to be used. I can't say the Plant is 100 percent perbut for plants of our type we have an excellent record. The Smoke ection Bureau of the District government has been complimentary out our clean operation.

Mr. ANDREWS. Do you have any modern gadgets to eliminate or rimize air pollution?

Mr. RUBEL. We have had all of those gadgets, Mr. Chairman, since except for the recent addition of two television cameras that are ined on the stacks so that the operators can see from the operating For whether there is any smoke being discharged from the stacks.

COST OF COAL

Mr. ANDREWS. What about your coal bill? What does that run?
Mr. RUBEL. It is about $330,000-ranging from $300,000 to $330,000

Bear.

Mr. ANDREWS. Where do you buy the coal and under what contract? Mr. RUBEL. It is bought through a GSA contract from West Vira mines. It runs a little less than $10 a ton.

Mr. ANDREWS. Delivered?

Mr. RUBEL. Yes, sir.

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Mr. ANDREWS. We will turn over to expansion of facilities, Capitol Power Plant.

On page 92 of the bill there is a new item of $250,000 for further expansion work at the Capitol Power Plant, which I guess isn't really a powerplant any more.

Will you tell us about this request?

Mr. HENLOCK. Public Law 85-895, 85th Congress, approved Sep tember 2, 1958, authorized and directed the Architect of the Capitol under the direction of the House Office Building Commission, to effect changes, improvements, and expansion in the facilities of the Capito Power Plant and its steam and chilled water distribution systems necessary to provide steam and chilled water for the Rayburn Hous Office Building, and for other improvements and projects then under way or proposed, and authorized the appropriation of a total amoun of $6,500,000 for such purpose.

At that time, six new construction projects were contemplated or in progress: The Rayburn House Office Building, the cafeteria in the courtyard of the Longworth House Office Building, the garage in the courtyard of the Cannon House Office Building, the new Senate subway transportation system, the House subway transportation system, and extension of the east-central front of the Capitol and other changes and improvements authorized under the Extension of the Capitol project. There was also contemplated replacement of the 60-year-old heating system in the main library of Congress Building with a new Beating and air-conditioning system. Most of these improvements have cow been completed.

In effecting the changes, improvements, and expansion in the Capitol Power Plant and its steam and chilled water distribution systems, it has been necessary to gear the same to the timetable under which the new projects have been accomplished. The Capitol Power Plant proram has been geared accordingly and 85 percent of the work authorzed by Public Law 85-895 has now been completed or placed under

ontract.

As of March 1, 1967, the total obligated under Public Law 85-895 $5,161,412. It is estimated that during the period March 1, 1967– June 30, 1968, it will be necessary to obligate an additional $1,255,588, a total obligation of $6,417,000. As of March 1, 1967, a total of $566,493 has been disbursed. During the period March 1, 1967-June 1968, it is estimated it will be necessary to disburse an additional 31.493,507, or a total of $6 million. As the total appropriated to date ounts to $5,750,000, it is necessary to request an appropriation of 0000 for the fiscal year 1968 in order to have available sufficient fds to liquidate obligations.

We have prepared detailed tables of obligations and expenses if you sh that for the record.

Mr. ANDREWS. Put one in the record and give each member a copy. The document follows:)

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Mr. HENLOCK. We show in our financial statement, that, to date, for boiler plant expansion, we have actually obligated $1,719,664; for refrigeration plant expansion, $1,785,022; for distribution system expansion, $743,170. The main obligations to be incurred in 1968 is $813,121 to complete the expansion of the distribution systems, and $255,000 to complete the auxiliary equipment, pipe and electrical work under the boiler plant expansion program.

IMPROVEMENTS AND CHANGES TO DATE

On pages 145-148 there is a detailed account of everything that has been done under the project to date, showing what expansions have been effected and how such expansions have increased the capacity of the plant. I can read it or just insert it in the record, as you wish. Mr. ANDREWS. We can just insert it in the record there. (The pages follow :)

Improvements and changes effected, to date, have included the following: Two 1100-ton refrigeration machines, complete with geared drives and 1250 horsepower electric motors, and two 2200-ton refrigeration machines, complete with geared drives and 2500 horsepower electric motors, have been installed at the Capitol Power Plant's refrigeration plant. Installation of these four machines has increased the capacity of the refrigeration plant from a total of 8,800 tons to 15,400 tons.

As an adjunct to these installations, a 3-cell cooling tower having a capacity equivalent to the condensing requirements of three 2200-ton refrigeration machines was constructed on the Capitol Power Plant grounds.

An additional chilled water pump of 9800 gallons per minute capacity, having hydraulic characteristics identical with those of three existing chilled water pumps, was installed at the plant. The four pumps now have a total pumping capacity of 39.200 gallons per minute at an imposed head of 245 feet of water. A dual piping system, consisting of one chilled water supply main and one return main, was installed from the southeast corner of the Old Senate Office Building to the Senate Terrace of the Capitol Building. This new section of chilled water piping established a physical connection between previously separate east and west distribution systems, thus providing a complete loop circuit from and to the Capitol Power Plant. This loop circuit has made possible a successful redistribution of the chilled water supply to all buildings connected to the system-a compelling requirement brought about by the construction of the Rayburn House Office Building.

A new railroad siding has been constructed on the Virginia Avenue side of the Capitol Power Plant Grounds. The new track system is designed to accommodate storage for eight 70-ton coal cars, while 8 additional cars of like capacity can be delivered to or removed from the plant grounds. This new siding has substantially expedited the coal-handling process and has eliminated the frequent car derailments and other hazards experienced with the old track system.

Four oil-fire steam generators, each having a capacity to produce 50,000 pounds of steam every hour, were installed at the plant. The addition of these oil-fired steam generators has increased the installed steam generating capacity of the Capitol Power Plant from 330,000 pounds per hour to 530,000 pounds per hour. Oil storage facilities, installed at the plant, include two 10,000-gallon underground steel tanks connected by a concrete tunnel to an underground concrete storage tank with sufficient capacity to store 200,000 gallons of fuel oil.

The antiquated coal-handling system, placed in operation in 1910 and designed to alternately deliver coal from the storage yard or track hopper to the coal bunkers within the plant, was removed from service in the spring of 1965; was demolished, and replaced by a modern system of hoppers, inclined belt conveyors, oil-fired car-thawing devices and a mechanical car shaker. The new system is capable of delivering variable quantities of coal up to approximately 200 tons maximum each hour from either a track hopper where coal is dumped from the cars, or from a coal-yard hopper in the storage yard; so that coal can now be conveyed from the track hopper to the bunkers, from the track hopper to the storage yard, or from the storage yard to the bunkers through separate systems of inclined conveyor belts.

A contract was awarded in the fall of 1966 for accomplishing modifications and extensions to the portion of the west steam distribution system located under

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