OPS is seeking hazardous liquid and gas transmission pipeline operators to participate in a pilot program aimed at determining whether a certification process for controllers is warranted. These actions are in response to requirements within Section 13(b) of the Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2002. OPS will be focused on the content of the pipeline operator’s administrative, training and evaluation techniques that make up the controller qualification process. Operators interested in participating are requested to contact OPS by May 16, 2005. The pilot program will be conducted from the second quarter of 2005 through the first quarter of 2006. OPS will summarize the pilot results, merge other project findings into the project report, and submit the report to Congress by December 17, 2006.
The stated objectives of this project are to:
- Define and document current practices and processes that pipeline operators use to determine that controllers have adequate knowledge, skills and abilities to perform their assigned tasks.
- Evaluate and determine what practices and processes best serve to substantiate that individual pipeline controllers have adequate knowledge, skills and abilities to perform their assigned tasks.
- Determine what evaluation techniques, criteria, and validation frequency can most effectively demonstrate proficiency.
- Define what administrative procedures, records, and certification criteria can best serve to demonstrate the aforementioned objectives.
- Determine how specific or uniform such practices, process content, evaluation parameters, and administrative procedures are across the various types of pipeline operators.
- Determine the adequacy of the existing operator personnel qualification requirements for controllers, in light of the significant impact they can have on pipeline safety and integrity.
- Develop conclusions and establish recommendations to be reported to Congress at the end of the project