[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 173 (Friday, September 6, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57060-57061]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-22734]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Research and Special Programs Administration


Pipeline Safety: Required Notification of National Response 
Center

AGENCY: Research and Special Programs Administration (RSPA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice; issuance of advisory bulletin.

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SUMMARY: The Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS) is issuing this advisory 
to owners and operators of gas distribution, gas transmission, and 
hazardous liquid pipeline systems, and liquefied natural gas (LNG) 
facilities. Owners and operators should ensure that telephonic reports 
of incidents to the National Response Center (NRC) are both prompt and 
accurate and fully communicate the estimated extent of the damages. 
Additional reports should be made if there is a significant change in 
an estimate of the size of the gas or liquid release, the extent of the 
damage, or the number of deaths or injuries.
    OPS is issuing this advisory bulletin to ensure that the National 
Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the OPS are notified (via the 
NRC) when the information provided in the initial telephonic report 
significantly changes due to new information available soon after the 
initial report.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Roger Little, (202) 366-4569; or by e-
mail, [email protected]. This document can be viewed at the OPS 
home page at http://ops.dot.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The pipeline safety regulations require gas pipeline, hazardous 
liquid pipeline, and LNG facility operators to make a telephonic report 
of a pipeline incident to the NRC in Washington, DC at the earliest 
practicable opportunity. For the purposes of this document, the term 
incident will refer to either an incident, an accident, a leak or a 
spill (the term differs in the regulations depending on whether the 
release involves gas, hazardous liquid or LNG). The information 
required to be reported includes the name of the operator, the name and 
telephone number of the person making the report, the location of the 
incident, the number of fatalities and injuries, and all other relevant 
significant facts. (49 CFR 191.5, 193.2011, and 195.52.)
    Because an operator is required to make a telephonic report at the 
earliest practicable moment following discovery, an operator normally 
provides the first telephonic notification one to two hours after it 
discovers an incident on its pipeline. Additional information on the 
nature, cause, and extent of the damage usually becomes available as 
emergency response proceeds. If this additional information leads to a 
significant change (greater or lesser) in the estimated amount of 
product released, the estimated number of fatalities and injuries, the 
extent of environmental damage, or the extent of property damage, the 
operator should make an additional telephonic report to the NRC. OPS 
considers a significant change to include any of the following:
    1. An increase or decrease in the number of previously reported 
injuries or fatalities;
    2. A revised estimate of the product release amount that is at 
least 10 times greater than the amount reported; for example, the 
initial reported amount of product released was 300 barrels and the 
revised estimated amount is 3,000 barrels;

[[Page 57061]]

    3. A revised estimate of the property damage that is at least 10 
times greater than the reported property damage estimate; for example, 
the initial reported amount of damage was 100,000 dollars and the 
revised estimate is 1,000,000 dollars.
    Often when the telephonic report is made, early information on an 
incident is incomplete. Sometimes, new information changes the 
understanding of the severity or nature of the incident. Although the 
telephonic reporting regulations do not state that multiple reports are 
required, the nature and timing of emergency response are dependent on 
the information reported to the NRC. It is critical that an operator 
provide accurate information on the extent of the incident. Therefore, 
OPS expects an operator to provide significant update information 
during the emergency response phase. For natural gas or LNG events, the 
initial emergency response phase usually ends between 24 and 48 hours 
following an incident. For hazardous liquid events, the initial 
emergency response phase may last several days as spill clean-up 
continues. Once the emergency response phase is complete, OPS does not 
expect an operator to continue to update the NRC throughout long-term 
recovery or remedial action activities.
    Some hazardous liquid operators do not provide an estimated product 
release amount when reporting an incident to the NRC. OPS recognizes 
the difficulty in estimating spill amounts, especially if the release 
is underground or into water. However, OPS's and NTSB's response to the 
incident may depend on the reported spill size. OPS and NTSB may not 
investigate a ten barrel spill and may perform an onsite investigation 
of a 20,000 barrel spill. To get this critical information, OPS is 
asking the NRC to request operators to provide an estimate of the spill 
amount. If an estimated amount is not provided, NRC assumes, for 
emergency notification and response purposes, that a major spill has 
occurred. Therefore, if the operator does not provide a spill estimate, 
NRC will enter a default spill estimate of 1,000 barrels. OPS will be 
notified of all spills over 500 barrels and any spill over 100 barrels 
that impacts water.
    In providing information on significant changes from the original 
telephonic report, operators need to be aware that the NRC does not 
update a prior report, but, instead, accepts additional reports. An 
operator should tell the NRC representative if a previous report was 
filed for the incident and provide the NRC Report Number of the 
original telephonic.

II. Advisory Bulletin (ADB-02-04)

To: Owners and Operators of Gas Distribution, Gas Transmission, and 
Hazardous Liquid Pipelines, and LNG Facilities
Subject: Telephonic Notification to NRC

    Purpose: To advise owners and operators of gas distribution, gas 
transmission, and hazardous liquid pipeline systems and LNG facilities 
of the need to promptly contact the NRC after a pipeline incident is 
discovered and to file additional telephonic reports if there are 
significant changes in the number of fatalities or injuries, product 
release estimates or the extent of damages.
    Advisory: Owners and operators of gas and hazardous liquid 
pipelines and LNG facilities are reminded that the pipeline safety 
regulations require operators to make a telephonic report of an 
incident to the NRC in Washington, DC at the earliest practicable 
opportunity, usually one to two hours after discovering the incident. 
The information required to be reported includes the name of the 
operator, the name and telephone number of the person making the 
report, the location of the incident, the number of fatalities and 
injuries, and all other significant facts that are relevant to the 
cause of the incident or extent of the damages. (49 CFR 191.5, 
193.2011, and 195.52.)
    If, during the emergency response period, additional information 
about the incident becomes available that shows a significant change in 
the number of fatalities and injuries, product release estimate, or the 
extent of property damage, an additional report to the NRC will be 
necessary. Although the regulation does not state that additional 
revised reports are required, it is important for emergency response 
purposes that the NRC be given accurate information on the extent of 
the incident.
    The NRC will accept additional reports, but will not update a 
previous report. Therefore, operators should file an additional 
report(s) when circumstances and estimates change significantly. An 
operator should provide an estimate of the damage in the initial report 
and in any subsequent report. The operator should include the NRC 
Report Number of the initial report when making a subsequent report. If 
an operator reports that a damage estimate is unknown or unavailable, 
the NRC will assume that a major spill has taken place for emergency 
notification and response purposes.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on August 30, 2002.
James K. O'Steen,
Deputy Associate Administrator for Pipeline Safety.
[FR Doc. 02-22734 Filed 9-5-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-60-P