[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 140 (Thursday, July 22, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43881-43882]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-16642]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Research and Special Programs Administration


Pipeline Safety: Semi-Annual Reporting of Performance Measures 
for Gas Transmission Pipeline Integrity Management

AGENCY: Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS), Research and Special Programs 
Administration (RSPA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice; issuance of advisory bulletin.

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SUMMARY: This document provides guidance to operators of gas 
transmission pipelines regarding semi-annual reporting of performance 
measures for integrity management. Operators of gas transmission 
pipelines subject to Subpart O, ``Pipeline Integrity Management,'' must 
submit four overall measures of their integrity management performance 
on a semi-annual basis. That regulation specifies that the first such 
report must be submitted by August 31, 2004. This document provides 
additional guidance for operators regarding the first required report 
and on-line reporting that will be available for the initial 
performance measure submittals.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shauna Turnbull by phone at (202) 366-
3731, by fax at (202) 366-4566, or by e-mail at 
[email protected], regarding the subject matter of this 
guidance. General information about the Research and Special Programs 
Administration, Office of Pipeline Safety (RSPA/OPS) programs may be 
obtained by accessing OPS's home page at http://ops.dot.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    By notice dated December 15, 2003, (68 FR 69778) RSPA/OPS published 
a new Subpart O to the regulations governing safety of gas pipelines in 
49 CFR part 192. Subpart O establishes requirements governing integrity 
management programs for gas transmission pipelines. Included among 
these requirements (49 CFR 192.945) are requirements for each 
transmission pipeline operator to maintain quantitative measures of its 
integrity management performance, including at least four overall 
performance measures specified in ASME/ANSI B31.8S, ``Managing System 
Integrity of Gas Pipelines,'' Section 9.4. The same regulation requires 
that each operator submit the four overall performance measures to 
RSPA/OPS on a semi-annual frequency. Subpart O was modified by a 
technical corrections rule published April 6, 2004, (69 FR 18228) 
which, among other changes, specified that the first semi-annual report 
be submitted by August 31, 2004.
    49 CFR 192.951 specifies the acceptable means for submitting 
reports required by Subpart O. That regulation specifies an address for 
submission by mail, includes a facsimile number, and provides that 
submissions can be made through the online reporting system provided by 
RSPA/OPS for electronic reporting. The electronic system is available 
at the OPS Home page at http://ops.dot.gov. The electronic submission 
form for integrity management performance measures is scheduled to be 
posted on the OPS Home Page no later than August 1, 2004.
    This advisory bulletin informs natural gas transmission pipeline 
operators that

[[Page 43882]]

the required initial performance measures submission will be 
abbreviated, in recognition of the developmental state of operator 
integrity management programs. This advisory bulletin also informs 
pipeline operators that an on-line submission form will be available in 
time to make the first submission required by the rule (i.e., on or 
before August 1, 2004).

Advisory Bulletin (ADB-04-02)

    To: Operators of gas transmission pipelines.
    Subject: First Semi-annual Report of Integrity Management 
Performance Measures.
    Purpose: To provide guidance to operators for making the first 
required semi-annual submission of performance measures for integrity 
management.
    Advisory: Operators are required by 49 CFR 192.945 to make their 
first semi-annual submission of integrity management performance 
measures by August 31, 2004. RSPA/OPS is developing an electronic form 
to facilitate submission of the required measures. This form will be 
available on the OPS Home Page (http://ops.dot.gov), no later than 
August 1, 2004. RSPA/OPS strongly encourages operators to submit data 
using the electronic form, since this minimizes future transcription 
and handling, with the attendant chance for error. Operators may, of 
course, submit the information by mail or facsimile, addressed to OPS, 
400 7th Street, SW., Room 2103, Washington, DC 20590. The fax number is 
(202) 366-4566. Please clearly notate your correspondence with ``Gas 
IMP Reporting''.
    The four overall performance measures that gas transmission 
pipeline operators are required to submit are:
    1. Number of pipeline miles inspected versus program requirements.
    2. Number of immediate repairs completed as a result of the 
integrity management inspection program.
    3. Number of scheduled repairs completed as a result of the 
integrity management program.
    4. Number of leaks, failures, and incidents (classified by cause).
    With respect to the first performance measure, the phrase ``versus 
program requirements'' refers to the number of miles of the operator's 
pipeline system that require assessment in accordance with Subpart O, 
(i.e., the number of miles in high consequence areas). Operators are 
not required to have developed their integrity management programs and 
baseline inspection plans until December 17, 2004, and thus may not 
know at this time the total number of miles that will require 
assessment. Similarly, operators may not know what repairs are 
reportable, since they may not know which were made in high consequence 
areas.
    The Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2002 (codified at 49 U.S.C. 
60109(c)) requires that pipeline operators begin baseline assessment of 
gas transmission pipeline in high consequence areas by June 17, 2004. 
On November 17, 2003, RSPA/OPS published Advisory Bulletin ADB-03-07 
(68 FR 64948), ``Pipeline Safety: Guidance on When the Baseline 
Integrity Assessment Begins,'' which provides guidance on what steps 
RSPA/OPS considers acceptable to begin the baseline assessment process 
to meet the intent of the statute. As described in more detail in the 
Advisory Bulletin, RSPA/OPS advises that operators must have begun 
efforts to perform inspections, including, for example, contracting 
with inspection agencies, but those operators need not have completed 
any inspections by that date.
    The electronic report form for the August 2004 report will ask 
operators to verify that they began integrity management assessments, 
consistent with Advisory Bulletin ADB-03-07, by June 17, 2004. 
Operators who submit by mail or facsimile should similarly indicate 
that they began assessment activities by the required date.
    RSPA/OPS has concluded that reporting numerical results for the 
four overall performance measures would be premature for the initial 
submission of performance measures required by August 31, 2004. Since 
integrity management plans, including identification of high 
consequence area mileage, are not required to be completed until 
December 2004, much of the data that might be reported in August would 
be preliminary and subject to change. Use of that data for comparison 
to later reports, (e.g., to identify trends), could be seriously 
misleading. RSPA/OPS expects that the electronic submission form to be 
created for the August 2004 submissions will indicate the form in which 
data will be collected for future intervals, but that those data fields 
will be inoperable for this reporting cycle. Operators reporting by 
mail or facsimile need not include numerical data related to the four 
overall performance measures. RSPA/OPS will provide additional advice 
regarding reporting for specific performance measures at a later date, 
if needed.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on July 16, 2004.
Stacey L. Gerard,
Associate Administrator for Pipeline Safety.
[FR Doc. 04-16642 Filed 7-21-04; 8:45 am]
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