Federal regulators are seeking to toughen regulations for interstate natural gas pipelines following two deadly explosions that rocked the West and East Coasts within the past year.

The Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) Wednesday issued an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM), which seeks public comment on whether certain regulatory exemptions for pipelines constructed before 1970 should be eliminated and whether integrity management (IM) requirements for pipelines, which primarily apply to pipe segments in highly populated areas, should be strengthened and expanded. The public has 60 days to comment.

“PHMSA believes that IM requirements[for] gas transmission pipelines …have increased the level of safety associated with the transportation of gas in HCAs [high-consequence areas, densely populated]. Still incidents with significant consequences continue to occur on gas transmission pipelines,” according to the ANPRM, which cited the California pipeline explosion in September 2010, where eight people were killed, and the pipeline explosion in Allentown, PA, in February that killed five people (see Daily GPI, Feb. 14; Sept. 13, 2010).

“As a result of this [San Bruno] event, public concern has been raised regarding whether safety requirements applicable to pipe in populated areas can be improved. PHMSA is thus considering expanding the definition of an HCA so that more miles of pipeline are subject to [stricter] IM requirements,” the ANPRM said.

HCAs currently are defined as areas along pipelines’ systems where releases could have greater consequence to health and safety or the environment.

Moreover, PHMSA is considering whether revised requirements are needed on new construction or existing pipelines concerning mainline valves, including valve spacing and installation of remotely operated or automatically operated values; whether requirements for corrosion control of steel pipelines should be strengthened; and whether new regulations are needed to govern the safety of gathering lines and underground gas storage facilities.

The action is the first step in a lengthy rulemaking process. The ANPRM can be found on PHMSA’s web site at https://www.phmsa.dot.gov.

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