A former Colorado Natural Gas employee found state and federal code violations in the way his home was converted from propane to natural gas, and he says he’s worried that thousands of other homes around Conifer and Evergreen have similar mistakes.

Eric Allen, of Conifer, took those concerns about his own home to the Public Utilities Commission, and in late June, the regulatory agency levied a $1.125 million fine that CNG would have to pay if the mistakes weren’t fixed. The PUC field inspector found “numerous former propane lines” being used to carry natural gas, which served as evidence that the home hadn’t been properly leak-surveyed in recent years as required by law.

“Evaluation of the information gathered during the course of this inspection has led to the uncertainty of the entirety of CNG’s Colorado assets,” according to the field inspector’s report. “Further inspection of these assets is warranted.”

CNG sent a statement to The Denver Post saying its been working to correct the specific issue on Allen’s property and additional “legacy issues” for more than a year.

“We proactively developed a remediation plan and implemented accelerated leak surveys to ensure there was no imminent threat to our customers,” spokesperson Lizzy Reinholt said. “No leaks have been identified on the system related to these legacy issues and the Colorado Public Utilities Commission gas safety staff has said there is no imminent threat.

“Our independent inspectors identified 77 service lines that required replacement, even though they are rated to carry natural gas. The Colorado Public Utilities Commission has a deep seated commitment to safety, as do we.”

State Sen.Tammy Story, D-Confier, disagreed. She said CNG hasn’t given this issue “near the attention” it deserves, and the process has not been “efficient, effective or expeditious.” Specifically, she was upset CNG hasn’t notified its customers that their gas lines could be incorrect.

“I think this is definitely a case where we have corporate financial interests that are taking precedence over the public safety of their customers,” Story said. “This just cannot stand.”

Here’s what Allen says happened.

About 20 years ago, the price of natural gas dropped and offers from natural gas companies like CNG started coming into to propane tank owners across the country. A lot of homeowners decided to make the switch. When they converted, federal and state law required those companies to run new lines to the homes. Allen and Story said there are a couple of reasons why. Propane lines are meant to carry 3 to 5 pounds of pressure while natural gas lines carry anywhere from 30 to 80 pounds of pressure. Natural gas lines have to include a copper wire called a tracer that allows the pipes to be located underground, and natural gas lines cannot legally run underneath a building.

“It’s problematic because the fittings are not going to be solid between the two different types of pipe,” Story said.

It’s also a violation of federal law.

Allen said he first realized he had propane lines running natural gas at his house after a rainstorm in 2015 when the pipe literally washed up. He said he had recently retired in good standing from CNG for medical reasons, and he said he worked with the company to rebury the line.

“I was told they had a waiver from the PUC,” Allen said.

That didn’t sit right with Allen, but he didn’t question it until two years later when a home exploded in Firestone, killing two people. He said he checked with the PUC about that waiver and was told it wouldn’t be possible because the line requirements for natural gas are federal law.

“We were all lied to for a long time,” Allen said.

After discovering the problems with his home, Allen said he looked at some of his neighbors’ homes, local schools, fire stations and even the cabins and bathrooms at a state park. He said he found dozens of violations, including several relief valves that were installed underneath heating vents. That’s a problem in colder weather because heaters have pilot lights and those relief valves release natural gas on a regular basis to maintain consistent pressure inside the lines.

“All these customers are upset that I’ve talked to because they thought, here’s the professionals coming in, they should do the job right,” Allen said. “And now they’re looking at all this.”

CNG said it initiated a systemwide audit of the Conifer area that included 1,932 locations and identified 77 service lines for replacement, 49 of which still need to be completed. Additionally, the company retained EN Engineering to perform a SWOT-style (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis of CNG’s distribution integrity management program.

The Denver Post couldn’t find any other citizen complaints filed with the PUC about propane lines being used to carry natural gas, but Story said that’s because most people don’t know what to look for the way Allen did.

“Conceivably, the entirety of the district is at risk,” she said.