[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 32 (Thursday, February 19, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7739-7740]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-3487]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

[Docket ID PHMSA-2009-0026]


Pipeline Safety: Workshop on Internal Corrosion in Hazardous 
Liquid Pipelines

AGENCY: Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), 
DOT.

ACTION: Notice of Workshop.

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SUMMARY: The Pipeline, Inspection, Protection, Enforcement, and Safety 
Act of 2006 (PIPES), Public Law 109-468, Section 22, requires PHMSA to 
review the internal corrosion control regulations to determine if the 
regulations are currently adequate to ensure that the pipeline 
facilities subject to the regulations will not present a hazard to 
public safety or the environment. As a follow-up to this review and our 
report to Congress, PHMSA is sponsoring a Workshop on Internal 
Corrosion in Hazardous Liquid Pipelines to allow stakeholders of the 
pipeline safety community to learn about and discuss PHMSA regulations, 
industry standards and practices, current evaluation practices and 
methods to assure pipeline safety.

DATES: The workshop will be held on March 26, 2009. Name badge pick-up 
and on-site registration will be available starting at 7:30 a.m. with 
the agenda taking place from 8 a.m. until approximately 5 p.m. Refer to 
the meeting Web site for updated agenda and times: https://
primis.phmsa.dot.gov/meetings/Mtg57.mtg. Please note that the workshop 
will not be webcast. However, presentations will be available on the 
meeting Web site within 30 days following the workshop.

ADDRESSES: The workshop will be held at the OMNI Hotel at CNN Center, 
100 CNN Center, Atlanta, GA 30303. The meeting room will be posted at 
the hotel on the day of the workshop.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joshua Johnson at (816) 329-3825, or 
by e-mail at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Registration: Members of the public may attend this free workshop. 
To help assure that adequate space is provided, all attendees are 
encouraged to register for the workshop at http://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/
meetings/Mtg57.mtg.
    Comments: Members of the public may also submit written comments, 
either before or after the workshop. Comments should reference Docket 
ID PHMSA-09-0026. Comments may be submitted in the following ways:
     E-Gov Web Site: http://www.regulations.gov. This site 
allows the public to enter comments on any Federal Register notice 
issued by any agency. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
     Mail: Docket Management System, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Room W12-140, Washington, 
DC 20590.
     Hand Delivery: Docket Management System, Room W12-140, on 
the ground floor of the West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., 
Washington, DC between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except 
Federal holidays.
    Instructions: Identify the Docket ID at the beginning of your 
comments. If you submit your comments by mail, submit two copies. If 
you wish to receive confirmation that PHMSA has received your comments, 
include a self-addressed stamped postcard. Internet

[[Page 7740]]

users may submit comments at http://www.regulations.gov. Note: Comments 
will be posted without changes or edits to http://www.regulations.gov 
including any personal information provided. Please see the Privacy Act 
heading in the Regulatory Analyses and Notices section of the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for additional information.
    Privacy Act Statement: Anyone may search the electronic form of all 
comments received for any of our dockets. You may review DOT's complete 
Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register published April 11, 2000 
(65 FR 19477).
    Information on Services for Individuals with Disabilities: For 
information on facilities or services for individuals with 
disabilities, or to request special assistance at the meeting, please 
contact Joshua Johnson by March 6, 2009.
    Issue Description: Pipeline safety regulations at 49 CFR 195.579(a) 
require operators to determine if the hazardous liquids they are 
transporting could corrode the pipeline and, if so, take adequate steps 
to mitigate that corrosion potential. PHMSA emphasizes that, while the 
workshop will involve issues related to Part 195, some of the technical 
discussions on research and methods are of relevance to natural gas 
pipeline operators. For this reason, PHMSA also encourages natural gas 
pipeline operators to attend the meeting.
    Although the base commodity may not be corrosive, all hazardous 
liquids regulated under Part 195 could be corrosive during some phase 
of the production and/or manufacturing process when contaminants could 
be introduced. Often, the only barrier separating untreated product or 
corrosive materials from a pipeline transporting processed/refined 
products is the processing plant or refinery. These plants occasionally 
undergo upset conditions where all or a portion of the untreated 
product may bypass the treatment process and enter the downstream 
piping. During those upset conditions, corrosive materials might be 
introduced into the pipeline and could create a corrosive condition.
    Pipeline operators who previously concluded that an internal 
corrosion control program was not needed may need to critically re-
analyze operating conditions and internal corrosion risk factors and 
periodically monitor, or otherwise reconfirm, that the pipeline is free 
of corrosive materials. Operators should perform a periodic system 
analysis and document the results, confirming that they properly 
analyzed the pipeline for possible internal corrosion precursors. In 
addition, operators should also conduct periodic monitoring for changes 
that might increase this risk and identify possible sites of selective 
internal corrosion risks.
    The workshop is intended to allow representatives of the pipeline 
industry, regulatory agencies, the public, and other stakeholders to 
discuss the implications of these results and the potential need for 
further research and/or regulatory changes.

Preliminary Workshop Agenda

    The workshop will include:
    (1) Overview of current PHMSA regulations and data on internal 
corrosion.
    (2) Overview of industry internal corrosion control documents.
    (3) Review of current industry practices for evaluating, 
monitoring, and management of internal corrosion.
    Refer to the meeting Web site for a more detailed agenda: http://
primis.phmsa.dot.gov/meetings/Mtg57.mtg
    PHMSA publishes requirements for the mitigation of internal 
corrosion at 49 CFR Part 195 for hazardous liquids pipelines. PHMSA and 
other presenters plan to discuss the process of analyzing a pipeline 
system to determine whether internal corrosion is a threat and how to 
manage the threat if it exists. PHMSA will consider the discussion at 
the workshop and comments submitted to the docket in determining 
whether changes to regulatory requirements are needed and what those 
changes should be.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on February 11, 2009.
Jeffrey D. Wiese,
Associate Administrator for Pipeline Safety.
[FR Doc. E9-3487 Filed 2-18-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-60-P