A university statement said the event is a “controlled release of natural gas and will be done with all appropriate safety measures in place.”
The central heating plant at the University of Massachusetts Amherst opened in 2009.
AMHERST — The University of Massachusetts Amherst will vent and purge natural gas lines southwest of the central heating plant on Saturday between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m., which is expected to spread the odor of gas nearby.
The Boyden playing fields and Mullins Center Service Road will be closed, and the UMass Police Department will limit access to the immediate area to emergency vehicles.
A university statement said the event is a “controlled release of natural gas and will be done with all appropriate safety measures in place.”
However, it is likely that the odor of gas will be detected by the campus community adjacent to the heating plant.
The plant is completing installation and commissioning of equipment for a new temporary satellite liquefied natural gas fuel source, the statement said. The commissioning process requires a purging of a newly installed exterior gas line with inert nitrogen followed by natural gas from the Berkshire Gas Co. distribution line.
UMass staff will monitor the work.