June 26-27, 2019 Join us June 26-27, 2019 in Houston at our corporate office and dedicated training facility for this new workshop on the fundamentals of pipeline operations. This 2-day course is designed to give a comprehensive overview of gas and liquid energy transmission pipelines and how they are operated and maintained. It is appropriate…
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California Proposed One Call Changes
[CRNR, Register 2019, Volume No. 20-Z, 05/17/2019, pages 780-784] The California Underground Facilities Safe Excavation Board is proposing to add sections 4000 through 4361 under California Code of Regulations, Title 19, Division 4, Chapters 1 – 4. The regulations proposed in this rulemaking action would establish definitions for certain terms used in the proposed regulations,…
Illinois Gas Regulations Update
On May 21, 2019, the Illinois Commerce Commission revised their regulations in Title 590 – Minimum Safety Standards for Transportation of Gas and for Gas Pipeline Facilities. These revisions updated Section 590.10(a) to exclude Section 49 CFR 192.12 from the Federal Standards Incorporated by Reference. In addition, the revisions state Operators are not required to…
Job Opening – Executive Director of the Pipeline Safety Trust
Carl Weimer, the executive director of the Pipeline Safety Trust since its inception in 2003, has announced his intention to retire at the end of this year. The board of the PST is actively seeking a replacement, and is accepting resumes until June 12, 2019. Additional information can be found here. On a personal note,…
2019 Summer Industry Conference Schedule
TGA Operations and Management ConferenceJuly 9-12, 2019Embassy Suites | San Marcos, TXRegistration opening soon. SGA Natural Gas ConnectJuly 15-17, 2019J.W. Marriott Hill Country Resort & Spa | San Antonio, TX RCP is a proud sponsor and exhibitor of this new conference with a new name. Also known as NGC, this new conference will offer more…
HAWC Annual Race Against Violence
February 25, 2017 – Houston RCP is a proud sponsor of the Houston Area Women’s Center (HAWC), a local non-profit organization committed to helping individuals affected by domestic and sexual violence move their lives forward. They offer a variety of services including shelter, counseling and advocacy. They also seek to end domestic and sexual violence…
Save the Dates! RCP Workshop Schedule for 2017
DOT Gas & Liquid Pipeline Workshop: March 21-23 (Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday) Pressure Test Workshop: April 11-12 (Tuesday & Wednesday) Fundamentals of Pipeline Operations Workshop: May 24-25 (Wednesday & Thursday) Visit our training website for updates, registration, and hotel information.
2017 Pipeline Conference News
The New Year is all about change and there are two industry conferences that have changed venues for 2017: PPIM and WRGC (note: the API PL conference always changes its location each year, so that doesnÕt count). Check out the details below. RCP will be attending the following conferences. We hope to see you there!…
North Dakota Approved Safety Rules for Underground Crude Oil & Produced Water Gathering Lines
[Order No. 27865] The North Dakota Industrial Commission’s proposed safety rules for underground crude oil and produced water gathering lines were approved on December 5, 2016. These rules apply for certain underground gathering pipelines capable of transferring crude oil or produced water from oil and gas production facilities. The new rules establish bonding and notification…
New York Regulation Updates
On December 30, 2016 the New York Department of Public Service updated their gas, hazardous liquid, liquefied natural gas and drug and alcohol testing regulations to better align with the requirements of the applicable federal regulations. As part of this update, Title 16 Chapter III Part 255 Section 559 concerning conversion of pipelines to jurisdiction…
Misc. Pipeline Regulation Updates in Florida
[Docket No. 160121-GU] The Florida Public Service Commission has published miscellaneous revisions to its pipeline safety regulations, including: Rule 25-6.0436, F.A.C., was updated to clarify the types of information to be in included quarterly work order lists and to require the information be sent directly to Commission staff via e-mail. Rule 25-12.005, F.A.C. was amended…
Random Drug Testing Rate, etc.
[Docket ID PHMSA-2016-0147] PHMSA has determined that the minimum random drug testing rate for covered employees will remain at 25 percent during calendar year 2017 (editor’s note: just like always…!). Operators are reminded that drug and alcohol testing information must be submitted for contractors performing or ready to perform covered functions. For calendar year 2016…
Gas Transmission
[Docket No. PHMSA-2011-0023] PHMSA is amending the pipeline safety regulations to address integrity management principles for Gas Transmission pipelines. In particular, PHMSA is addressing repair criteria for both HCA and non-HCA areas, assessment methods, validating and integrating pipeline data, risk assessments, knowledge gained through the IM program, corrosion control, change management, gathering lines, and safety…
PHMSA Projected Rulemaking Dates
The Department of Transportation (DOT) publishes a Significant Rulemaking Report that reflects the revised dates for the Pipeline Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) rulemakings. A quick reference table for the pipeline safety regulations is provided below with a short description of each rulemaking after the table. The full report can be seen here: http://www.dot.gov/regulations/report-on-significant-rulemakings. PHMSA…
PHMSA Advisory ADB-2016-06 Safeguarding and Securing Pipelines from Unauthorized Access
[Docket No. PHMSA-2016-0137] The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) issued an Advisory Bulletin in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security’s Transportation Security Administration to remind all pipeline owners and operators of the importance of safeguarding and securing their pipeline facilities and monitoring their Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems for abnormal…
GIS Services
RCP is an Esri Business Partner which enables RCP to provide a better service to our clients with access to all of Esri’s related products and technical support. RCP also has direct access to the latest NOAA Navigational Charts, USGS National Hydrology data, USDA Soil data, Bureau of Energy Management offshore data, Google and Bing…
High Consequence Area Identification Methods Advisory Bulletin (ADB-2016-07)
[Docket No. PHMSA-2016-0065] In response to NTSB Recommendation P-15-06, PHMSA has issued advisory bulletin ADB-2016-07 to inform owners and operators of gas transmission pipelines that PHMSA has developed guidance on the identification and periodic verification of HCAs, including the application of a buffer zone to the PIR, and information regarding the accuracy of class locations.…
PHMSA Pipeline Safety Information Collection Activities
On May 13, 2016, PHMSA published a notice in the Federal Register to invite comments on proposed revisions to these three forms: PHMSA F 7100.1 Incident Report-Gas Distribution System; PHMSA F 7100.2 Incident Report-Natural and Other Gas Transmission and Gathering Pipeline Systems; and PHMSA F 7100.3 Incident Report-Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Facilities, and the instructions…
PHMSA Claims Enforcement Jurisdiction in 5 States Over 3rd Party Excavators
Per PHMSA’s rule for evaluating state damage prevention and excavation enforcement programs (July 13th, 2015), PHMSA has evaluated eight damage prevention programs and deemed five states (Alaska, Colorado, Mississippi, Montana and West Virginia) inadequate to the standards of the new rule. Thus, PHMSA can enforce excavation enforcement programs in those states. For more information on…
New Associate Administrator for OPS
Alan Mayberry has been selected as the new Associate Administrator for the Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS), replacing Jeff Wiese, who retired earlier in 2016. Alan is a Civil Engineering graduate of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and is a registered professional engineer. He has over 34 years of experience in the energy industry, equally…