Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration January 2011 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

PHMSA is proposing to amend the Hazardous Materials Regulations to prohibit the transportation of flammable liquids in unprotected external product piping on DOT specification cargo tank motor vehicles. If adopted as proposed, these amendments will reduce fatalities and injuries that result from accidents during transportation involving the release of flammable liquid from unprotected external product piping.

In accordance with the procedures governing the application for, and the processing of, special permits from the Department of Transportation's Hazardous Material Regulations (49 CFR part 107, subpart B), notice is hereby given that the Office of Hazardous Materials Safety has received the applications described herein. This notice is abbreviated to expedite docketing and public notice. Because the sections affected, modes of transportation, and the nature of application have been shown in earlier Federal Register publications, they are not repeated here. Requests for modification of special permits (e.g. to provide for additional hazardous materials, packaging design changes, additional mode of transportation, etc.) are described in footnotes to the application number. Application numbers with the suffix ``M'' denote a modification request. These applications have been separated from the new application for special permits to facilitate processing.

PHMSA is issuing an Advisory Bulletin to remind operators of gas and hazardous liquid pipeline facilities of their responsibilities, under Federal integrity management (IM) regulations, to perform detailed threat and risk analyses that integrate accurate data and information from their entire pipeline system, especially when calculating Maximum Allowable Operating Pressure (MAOP) or Maximum Operating Pressure (MOP), and to utilize these risk analyses in the identification of appropriate assessment methods, and preventive and mitigative measures.

On October 18, 2010, (75 FR 63774), PHMSA published in the Federal Register an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) titled: ``Safety of On-Shore Hazardous Liquid Pipelines'' seeking comments on the need for changes to the regulations covering hazardous liquid onshore pipelines. PHMSA has received requests to extend the comment period in order to have more time to evaluate the ANPRM. PHMSA has concurred in part with these requests and has extended the comment period from January 18, 2011, to February 18, 2011.