On April 10, 2013, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) filed suit against PHMSA in the US District Court for the District of Columbia, alleging that the Agency has failed to produce records and documents in response to requests made by PEER under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The group seeks copies of facility
Facility Response Plan
DOT issues Pipeline Safety Update
As a follow-up to Department of Transportation (DOT)’s “Call to Action,” the Agency released a Pipeline Safety Update to provide a pipeline safety report after a review of the nation’s pipeline infrastructure. In particular, the update summarizes DOT’s call to action plan to accelerate the rehabilitation, repair, and replacement of high risk pipeline infrastructure, the…
PHMSA Issues NPRM Regarding Enforcement Procedures
PHMSA has published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) including numerous proposed amendments to 49 C.F.R. Part 190 with regard to PHMSA enforcement and administrative procedures in order to conform the Agency’s regulations with various requirements of the Pipeline Safety Act Reauthorization amendments that were signed into law on January 3, 2012, as well as…
Clean Rivers Act of 2011
Senators Baucus and Tester introduced the Clean Rivers Act of 2011 to address perceived gaps in pipeline safety and transparency as a result of the Yellowstone incident. This bill proposes to require PHMSA to review river pipeline crossing regulations and revise them, boost leak detection standards, and update spill response plans. Click here to view…
Part 194 Updated Spill Response Plans Due to PHMSA
On June 28, 2010, in response to the Gulf oil spill, PHMSA issued an Advisory Bulletin to all liquid pipeline operators, requiring operators to review and, if necessary, revise and update their spill response plans. Such plans are required under 49 C.F.R. Part 194 (DOT’s implementation of OPA-90 spill response requirements). PHMSA notes that in…