Regulacje i polityka gospodarcza · 01/12/2000

Pipeline Safety: Pipeline Integrity Management in High Consequence Areas (Hazardous Liquid Operators With 500 or More Miles of Pipeline)

This final rule specifies regulations to assess, evaluate, repair and validate through comprehensive analysis the integrity of hazardous liquid pipeline segments that, in the event of a leak or failure, could affect populated areas, areas unusually sensitive to environmental damage and commercially navigable waterways. OPS is requiring that an operator develop and follow an integrity management program that provides for continually assessing the integrity of all pipeline segments that could affect these high consequence areas, through internal inspection, pressure testing, or other equally effective assessment means. The program must also provide for periodically evaluating the pipeline segments through comprehensive information analysis, remediating potential problems found through the assessment and evaluation, and ensuring additional protection to the segments and the high consequence areas through preventive and mitigative measures. Through this required program, hazardous liquid operators will comprehensively evaluate the entire range of threats to each pipeline segment's integrity by analyzing all available information about the pipeline segment and consequences of a failure