MGP Short History
From 1800 in the UK to 1977 in the Marina and Fisherman’s Wharf
Introduction
While many people use gas for heating and cooking, they are unaware of its history. The gas used today is natural gas. Before there was natural gas, there was manufactured gas. Manufactured gas was made from coal and mainly used for lighting in its first hundred years. In time, electricity took over for lighting and manufactured gas became the common fuel for heating and cooking. Later still, manufactured gas was replaced by natural gas.
People readily accepted manufactured gas in its heyday but the industry left a legacy we are still struggling with today. Toxic chemicals produced during the manufacturing process were discarded into the environment. The chemicals are very persistent. Places where gas was manufactured are often contamination sites today.
Industry: 1800 – 2000
Gas manufacturing started in the UK around 1800 and spread to most industrialized countries. The practice lasted roughly 200 years worldwide and 150 years in America. In San Francisco, the era was from the 1850s to the 1950s. The gas manufacturing industry was driven by evolution in the technology of production which occurred throughout the industrial revolution. Because it has not been produced for decades, the history of gas manufacturing is mostly forgotten.
Gas manufacturing was big business in its time. It was important then, and it spawned today’s power industry. Gas was the first energy delivered to homes and businesses. Most of today’s large gas and electric companies started out by manufacturing gas from coal. When electricity became widely available it competed with gas for lighting. Quickly however, it became clear to the gas manufacturers that electricity would become just another form of energy delivered to customers. Usually, the established gas companies acquired smaller electric companies and the first combined gas and electric companies started delivering electric energy along with manufactured gas to their customers. In time, many of those same companies acquired the rights to natural gas fields and developed the pipeline technology to the point where it became practical to replace manufactured gas with natural gas.
In the early days, gas was a new product in an unserved market and competition was fierce. Duplication of pipes and transmission lines in the same area was inefficient and that led to consolidation through acquisitions and mergers. Over time, the largest gas and electric companies outcompeted smaller suppliers and became de-facto monopolies in their territories. State and local governments stepped in and granted official monopolies in exchange for regulation. The result is the network of regulated utilities familiar throughout the United States today.
Downside
Gas was produced in Manufactured Gas Plants (MGPs) by heating coal or coke, a product made from coal, in the absence of oxygen. In addition to the desired gas, MGPs generated byproducts containing chemical compounds designated hazardous by the EPA. Coal can be dirty when burned, of course, but it is the absence of oxygen in the MGP process that creates particularly harmful compounds known as PAHs. In addition to those chemicals, the gas is smoky at first and must be cleaned before delivering it to customers. The filtering process produces other dangerous chemicals. During an era of low environmental awareness, MGPs commonly disposed of unwanted byproducts in the most convenient place: the ground and nearby waters. Although the manufacturing of gas ended decades ago, the hazardous chemicals are so persistent in the environment that the areas around former MGPs are often contamination sites today.
San Francisco: 1852 – 1950s
PG&E traces its roots to San Francisco Gas Company (SFG) which was incorporated in 1852. SFG was the first company to manufacture gas on the west coast. Its first customer was the city of San Francisco. Another prominent early customer was the Palace Hotel which is still in existence in downtown San Francisco. Gas was a hit with the public and the company grew rapidly over the next fifty years. SFG first became San Francisco Gaslight Company (SFGL) and then San Francisco Gas and Electric Company (SFG&E). By the turn of the 1900s, SFG&E controlled most of the energy market in the city. In 1905, SFG&E merged with another northern California power company to create Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E).
PG&E’s service area eventually covered most of northern California and the company utilized between 70 and 80 MGPs to service its market. Four of the MGPs are located along San Francisco’s northern waterfront. They are known contamination sites and the subject of the this website. Two are in the Marina: the Fillmore MGP (established 1882) and the North Beach MGP (1891). Two others are in Fisherman’s Wharf: the Cannery MGP (1898) and the Beach Street MGP (1900). They are often referred to by the acronyms FIL, NOB, CAN, and BCH, respectively.
Natural gas was first introduced into San Francisco during the 1930s. PG&E stopped manufacturing gas in the bay area in the 1950s.
Marina: 1977
The first warning of a problem occurred in the Marina in 1977. Geologists were investigating soil conditions in preparation for a large infrastructure project known as a Box Sewer. The ground under a section of Marina Boulevard was found to be “extensively” contaminated with creosote. Creosote is a derivative of coal tar, a highly concentrated byproduct of MGPs. The terms coal tar, creosote, and NAPL (which stands for Non-Aqueous Phase Liquid, a technical term) are often used interchangeably. A report written by the geologists said the contamination was “probably” due to the gas plant in the area.
Contamination in this location is particularly worrisome. The contaminated section of Marina Boulevard overlays a lagoon which fronted the FIL and NOB MGPs when they were in operation. The lagoon existed in the period before the Marina was filled. The fill area is roughly 50 acres of dry land today. The former lagoon is separated from San Francisco Bay by the narrow seawall that supports the Marina Green. Both groundwater and tidal forces are known to cause chemicals to migrate underground. If the lagoon is contaminated, the Bay is threatened.
The 1977 discovery clearly warranted an investigation. The contamination should have been explored to determine its boundaries and the possibility of contamination reaching San Francisco Bay. But no investigation occurred. The box sewer was built, no more was said about extensive contamination in the lagoon.
For over four decades, the public has not been made aware of the extensive contamination found in close proximity to the Bay. During that time, there have been other signs of contamination from MGPs. There have been calls for comprehensive investigations, calls which went unheeded. Nearby, Gashouse Cove is a known contamination site and there is video of contamination bubbling up into San Francisco Bay. And yet the contamination found in the lagoon so long ago is ignored. There is something seriously wrong with this picture.