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…
January 2017
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…
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…
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…
Underground Gas Storage FAQs
PHMSA’s FAQs to clarify, explain and promote better understanding of issues concerning integrity assessment of Underground Natural Gas Storage can be found on PHMSA’s Pipeline Technical Resources webpage.
Underground Natural Gas Storage Interim Final Rule
[Docket No. PHMSA-2016-0016; Amdt. Nos. 191-24; 192-122] On December 19, 2016, PHMSA issued its Underground Natural Gas Storage (UGS) Interim Final Rule (IFR) regulations for all underground natural gas storage facilities constructed on or before July 18, 2017, including solution mined salt caverns, depleted reservoirs, and aquifer storage facilities, to address safety issues related to…
Underground Gas Storage Compliance
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…
Pressure Testing Webinar – Advantages of Using TestOp®
RCP will be hosting webinar presentations to discuss pipeline pressure testing practices and demonstrate the advantages of utilizing new technology for planning, designing, and capturing real-time data to validate and document whether it was a successful test. The same technology that RCP has used for the past six years to validate our customer’s pressure tests…