U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

U. S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration www.dot.gov

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U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

Aging (Old?) Infrastructure

Linda Daugherty Deputy Associate Administrator Policy and Programs Office of Pipeline Safety - 2 -

U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration • What defines “old”, anyway?

• If a pipeline is old, is it more risky?

• Are all types of old pipeline a concern?

• Are the regulations protective enough?

• What about replacement/ rehabilitation?

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U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

What is Old – Liquid?

• 55% installed prior to the regulations in 1970 • If installed in ‘70, it is over 40 yrs old.

• Mostly steel pipe • Post-war industry/ population surge - 4 -

U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

What is Old – Gas Transmission?

• 59% installed prior to the regulations in 1970 • If installed in ‘50, it is over 60 yrs old.

• Mostly steel pipe - 5 -

U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

What is Old – Gas Distribution?

• 31% installed prior to the regulations in 1970.

• Older – cast iron, bare steel, copper • Newer – plastic • Population growth/ city expansions - 6 -

U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

Is Older Pipe More Risky?

– Aging infrastructure issues: • material and techniques prevalent at the time (i.e. vintage) • amount of time in service (i.e., service age).

– Pipe installed in the 1950’s and 1960’s now have similar incident rates per mile as pipe installed more recently – Pipe installed in or before the 1940’s have a higher incident rate than pipe installed more recently. • Not known if higher incident rate is due to vintage issue or service age (over 70 years old) - 7 -

U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

What About the Type of Pipe?

• Steel Pipe (Liquid and Gas Transmission) – Vintage Issues – Steel quality, seam types, welding controls – Service Age Issues: Cycling, maintenance (corrosion prevention), component functionality • Cast Iron (Distribution) – Vintage Issues – Construction practices, small diameter (beam strength) – Service Age Issue: External stresses, graphitization - 8 -

U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

What About the Type of Pipe?

• Plastic Pipe (Distribution and some Gas Transmission) – Vintage Issues – Material quality control, installation practices (fusion, rock impingement) – Service Age Issues: Material degradation due to composition or environmental conditions.

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U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

Repair/Rehabilitation/ Requalification/Replacement?

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DOT Secretary Call to Action

– Encouraging ALL stakeholders to get involved.

• Different states = different risks and different priorities – Need to focus on highest risk pipe in each state – Older pipe can be difficult to assess/repair – Very expensive to consumers – Potentially very disruptive to the public - 10 -

U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

Are the Regulations Protective Enough ?

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192.703 General. (Natural Gas Pipelines)

(b) Each segment of pipeline that becomes unsafe must be replaced, repaired, or removed from service.

(c) Hazardous leaks must be repaired promptly.

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195.401 General requirements. (Liquid Pipelines)

(a) No operator may operate or maintain its pipeline systems at a level of safety lower than that required by this subpart and the procedures it is required to establish under §195.402(a) of this subpart. - 11 -

U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

Are the Regulations Protective Enough ?

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PHMSA is seeking YOUR input

Pipeline Safety: Safety of Gas Transmission Pipelines Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) – Comment Period Extended to January 20, 2012 • Pipeline Safety: Safety of On-Shore Hazardous Liquid Pipelines – Working on Notice of Proposed Rulemaking - 12 -

U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

U. S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration www.dot.gov

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