The U.S. Department of Transportation soon will begin a demonstration project to test risk management as an alternative to traditional pipeline safety regulation.
Kelley Coyner, acting administrator of DOT's Research and Special Programs Administration, told the Washington Natural Gas Roundtable, "The premise of our new approach is that reliance upon minimum federal safety standards does not result in the best use of our safety resources.
"The one-size-fits-all approach tends to allocate federal resources without regard to particular risks or circumstances. It also tends to limit industry incentives to maximize safety resources.
"We needed a system that manages risk and focuses our resources where they will provide the most benefit."
Pipelines surveyed
RSPA has surveyed pipelines to identify and rank their safety risks. Coyner said the next step is to select up to 10 risk management demonstration projects involving interstate gas and liquids pipeline companies.
"A key feature of these demonstration projects is that they must be designed to achieve levels of safety and environmental protection superior to the underlying regulations.
"Although this may seem like a high standard, we are now screening 12 operators who are interested in participating. Some of the proposals are limited to particular sections of a company's system. Others cover an operator's entire system. Taken together, they cover 30 states with wide variations in population density, geography, and terrain."
Coyner said each proposal is based on a risk assessment. Companies have suggested changes such as higher maximum allowable operating pressures and less frequent inspections, balanced by increased use of pigs and more detailed risk assessments.
She said if the agency can successfully demonstrate risk management, it will apply the concept to local distribution companies.
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