UPDATED 1/16/18

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) provides written clarification of the pipeline safety regulations (49 CFR Parts 190-199) in the form of frequently asked questions (FAQs), and other guidance materials. PHMSA has updated the FAQs for Control Room Management in the areas of Roles and Responsibilities, Operating Experience, Training, and Compliance and Deviation. The FAQs can be found on PHMSA’s website.

[Docket No. PHMSA-2016-0128]

PHMSA has announced a public meeting of the Voluntary Information-Sharing System (VIS) Working Group on February 28, 2018, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET at a location yet to be determined in the Washington, DC Metropolitan area. The VIS Working Group agenda will include briefings on topics such as mandate requirements, integrity management, data types and tools, in-line inspection repair and other direct assessment methods, geographic information system implementation, subcommittee considerations, lessons learned, examples of existing information-sharing systems, safety management systems, and more. As part of its work, the committee will ultimately provide recommendations to the Secretary, as required and specifically outlined in Section 10 of Public Law 114-183, addressing:

• The need for, and the identification of, a system to ensure that dig verification data are shared with in-line inspection operators to the extent consistent with the need to maintain proprietary and security-sensitive data in a confidential manner to improve pipeline safety and inspection technology;
• Ways to encourage the exchange of pipeline inspection information and the development of advanced pipeline inspection technologies and enhanced risk analysis;
• Opportunities to share data, including dig verification data between operators of pipeline facilities and in-line inspector vendors to expand knowledge of the advantages and disadvantages of the different types of in-line inspection technology and methodologies;
• Options to create a secure system that protects proprietary data while encouraging the exchange of pipeline inspection information and the development of advanced pipeline inspection technologies and enhanced risk analysis;
• Means and best practices for the protection of safety and security-sensitive information and proprietary information; and
• Regulatory, funding, and legal barriers to sharing the information described in paragraphs (a) through (d).

The Secretary will publish the VIS Working Group’s recommendations on a publicly available DOT website and in the docket. The VIS Working Group will fulfill its purpose once its recommendations are published online.

The meeting location, agenda and any additional information will be published on the VIS Working Group and registration page. The meetings will not be webcast; however, presentations will be available on the meeting website and posted on the E-Gov website under docket number PHMSA-2016-0128 within 30 days following the meeting. Members of the public who wish to attend in person should register no later than February 23, 2018, and will have an opportunity to make a statement during the meetings.

For information about the meeting, contact Cheryl Whetsel by phone at 202-366-4431 or by email at cheryl.whetsel@dot.gov.

MARCH 2, 2018

A public meeting of the Technical Pipeline Safety Standards Committee, also known as the Gas Pipeline Advisory Committee (GPAC) will be held on March 2, 2018 by teleconference from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. EST. The GPAC will meet to continue discussing topics and provisions for the proposed rule titled “Safety of Gas Transmission and Gathering Pipelines.” In particular, GPAC will discuss the following:

• Strengthening IM Assessment Methods
• Assessments outside of HCAs
• Record Retention Requirements
• Repair Criteria (inside and outside of HCAs)

To participate in the teleconference you will need to register in advance on the pipeline advisory committee meeting and registration page no later than February 15, 2018. PHMSA will post the final agenda, and any additional information on the pipeline advisory committee meeting and registration page about 15 days before the meeting takes place. Anyone wishing to make a statement on the topics discussed during the meeting should send an email to cheryl.whetsel@dot.gov. Each statement should not exceed two minutes.

How does RCP deliver a comprehensive solution for natural gas storage operational integrity assurance?

Experienced Resources

• Highly respected underground storage & risk management SME’s (the past Chair of PRCI’s and AGA’s underground storage committees is on our staff)
• Professional engineering support
• Written program development / improvement from knowledgeable technical standards developers (Our lead technical writer was the editor for the API RP1170 development team.)

State-Of-The-Art Tools (TaskOp™)

• Program gap assessment and corrective action tracking
• Storage risk assessment
• Integrity assessment and remediation process tracking

For more information regarding our capabilities or to request an online demonstration of our TaskOp™ underground gas storage solution, contact Jessica Foley.

Before you pick up a shovel, remember to pick up your phone. The Railroad Commission of Texas (TRRC) damage prevention rules require anyone planning to dig deeper than 16 inches to call 811 before digging to prevent damage to underground pipelines. This call prompts pipeline operators to mark their underground natural gas or hazardous liquid pipelines.

House Bill 1818, the Commission’s Sunset Bill passed by the 85th Legislature last year, gives TRRC authority over damage incidents on interstate pipelines that cross state boundaries. Previously, the Commission’s damage prevention authority was limited to intrastate pipelines that begin and end in Texas.

Effective February 12, 2018, excavators are required to notify the pipeline operator by calling the 811 notification center as soon as possible about any damage incidents, but no later than one hour after an incident. Excavators will also be required to call 911 if any natural gas or other product is released when an underground pipeline is struck. The amendments extend the deadline for pipeline operators and excavators to file a damage report with the Commission from the current 10 days to 30 days.

More information on these new rule requirements can be found here, under “Chapter 18. Underground Pipeline Damage Prevention.”

Excavation Job Planning is the latest toolbox topic to be added to the Excavation Damage Prevention Toolbox website at www.edptoolbox.org. The website is free and the new toolbox topic, as well as others, such as Excavation Monitoring and Observation, ROW Patrol and Response, ROW Usage by Landowner, One-Call Notification Screening, Operator One-Call Ticket Management Systems, and many more topics are available for downloading. The latest topic on Excavation Job Planning contains items to consider when developing a job plan to excavate safely around underground facilities to help drive down first and second party damages. Ideas for additional topics can be submitted directly to DamagePreventionToolbox@api.org.