American Gas - December 2010 - (Page 5)

PeoPle Trends evenTs news pipeline Safety moveS to center Stage recent pipeline incidents—most notably the industry pipeline explosion in san Bruno, calif., in september—have spurred congress to consider new pipeline safety legislation. The bill generally given the best chance of passage this year was introduced by sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-n.J., chairman of the subcommittee on surface Transportation of the senate commerce committee, and commerce committee chairman Jay rockefeller, D-W.Va. The bill would: require the installation of automatic or remotecontrolled shutoff valves on new transmission pipelines where they are technically and economically feasible. expand excess flow valve requirements to include multifamily housing and small commercial facilities, where technically and economically feasible. increase civil penalties for violators of pipeline regulations and add civil penalties for obstructing investigations. eliminate exemptions and require all local and state government agencies and their contractors to notify one-call centers before digging. require the secretary of transportation to establish time limits on accident and leak notification by pipeline operators to state and local governments and emergency responders. require the secretary to evaluate whether integrity management system requirements should be expanded beyond currently defined high-consequence areas and establish regulations as appropriate. make pipeline information, inspections and standards available to the public on the website of the Pipeline and Hazardous materials safety Administration (PHmsA). Authorize additional pipeline inspectors and pipeline safety support employees through a phasedin increase over the next four years. Allow PHmsA to recover costs for oversight of large pipeline design and construction projects. Authorize appropriations for PHmsA for fiscal years 2011–2014. Legislation introduced by sens. Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein, both california Democrats, would double the number of federal pipeline safety inspectors, require electronic flow valves, require smart pigging or an inspection by an equally effective method of all pipes, prohibit pipelines from operating at high pressure if they cannot be inspected using the most effective inspection technology, and require the secretary of transportation to consider pipe age and the seismicity of an area when identifying pipelines deserving the highest level of safety oversight. A bill introduced on the House side by rep. Jackie speier, D-calif., similar to the Boxer-Feinstein bill, would add a requirement that pipeline operators notify all owners and residents of property within 2,000 feet of a transmission line of the presence of that line. Kyle rogers, AGA vice president of public affairs, said “while there is only a slim chance of a pipeline safety bill passing during the lame-duck session, AGA is fully engaged in working on trying to secure passage of reasonable legislation throughout the session.” AmericAn GAs december 2010/january 2011 5

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Gas - December 2010

American Gas - December 2010
Contents
President’s Message: A Fond Farewell
Industry News
Safety First: Going All-in on Safety
To Be the Best: For the Record
Opportunity Knocks
Workforce 2020: Beyond the Boomers
Places to Be
Noteworthies
Jobline
Marketplace
Advertisers’ Index
Facts on Gas

American Gas - December 2010