As I
noted last month Rep. Hahn (D,CA) introduced HR
4687, the Pipeline Inspection Enforcement Act of 2014. This bill is
intended to close a gap in the pipeline inspection process during the transfer
of pipelines from one company to another. It was inspired by the recent March
17th crude
oil spill in Wilmington, CA. It would amend 49
USC 60108.
Section 2 of the bill would add new paragraphs (e) and (f)
to §60108. Paragraph
(e) would require the Secretary of Transportation to establish regulations
governing the inspection of pipelines that are purchased by a new owner. The
regulations would require an inspection within 180 days of the date of sale.
The inspections would be conducted both by the person purchasing the pipeline
and the regulatory agency responsible for inspecting pipelines in that State.
Paragraph (f) would address the issue of ‘abandoned’
pipelines. It would require a similar set of inspections for any pipeline that
is newly listed as ‘abandoned’. The inspections would be done by “the
regulatory authority responsible for inspections of the facility, together with
the person owning or operating the facility” {§60108(f)}.
The term ‘abandoned’ is defined in the current USC as “permanently
removed from service” {§60108(c)(1)(A)},
but that definition only applies to underwater pipelines. This bill probably
should have been included a definition that would have included language that
that ‘abandoned’ also requires the pipeline to be empty of hazardous materials.
Simply inspecting the ‘abandoned’ pipeline in Wilmington may not have ended up
with it being emptied (though I would certainly like to think that it would
have been done if that had been discovered before the spill).
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