Administrative Rules of Montana
Department 17 - ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
Chapter 17.20 - MAJOR FACILITY SITING
Subchapter 17.20.15 - Application Requirements Facility Description and Design
Rule 17.20.1509 - LINEAR FACILITIES, DESIGN CHARACTERISTICS

(1) An application must contain an engineering description of the facility in detail sufficient to enable the department to assess the environmental impacts of construction, operation and maintenance and reliability of the proposed facility located on the preferred route.

(2) An application must contain a list of any reports, documents, studies, or calculations indicating that the preliminary design specifications and performance objectives for the major components of the facility are adequate and can be maintained in the continuous operation of the facility.

(3) An application must identify facility design features that were selected in order to reduce adverse environmental impacts.

(4) For an electric transmission facility, an application must contain an engineering description of major facility components, including the following: structure design and materials; height range of structures; approximate number of structures per mile; ground wire configurations; types and designs of markers and other warning devices; number and spacing of conductors; and location, size, and overall plan of new and modified substations, including present and future land requirements.

(5) For an electric transmission facility, an application must contain specifications for design peak voltage and amperage under adverse climatic conditions and under expected peak loading conditions.

(6) For an electric transmission facility, an application must include an estimate of radio and television interference, and electric and magnetic field strengths. This information on electric and magnetic fields must be provided for cross-sections of the right-of-way and must include maximum conditions under the conductors and at the edge of the right-of-way or easement, and attenuation rates beyond the edge of the right-of-way.

(7) For an electric transmission facility, an application must contain a statement certifying that the facility will meet the standards of the national electric safety code.

(8) For pipelines, an application must contain an engineering description of the facility, including conduit size and thickness, tensile strength, test and operating pressure, methods of joining sections of conduit, trenching depth, amount of ground cover over the pipeline, the location, size and overall plan for new or modified pumping and compressor stations, cathodic protection systems, and other safety features. Facility design specifications or criteria must also be provided for the normal and maximum transmitting or pumping capacity and pressure of compressor stations and pump stations.

(9) For pipelines, an application must contain a description of quality control and testing procedures and the information necessary to demonstrate that the facility can meet industry and US department of transportation pipeline standards.

(10) For pipeline, an application must contain a description of the source of power for pump and compressor stations and indicate on maps, in electronic format acceptable to the department, the proposed and alternative location of power supply lines for these stations.

(11) An application must contain a description of communication facilities that will be used to control and monitor operation of the facility and their location, including, but not limited to, radio, microwave, or satellite antennas, and any fiber optic cables. If fiber optic cables are used, the application must describe the use of any excess communication capacity.

(12) An application must contain a specific engineering or design explanation of the opportunities and constraints for paralleling or sharing existing utility or transportation rights-of-way, or portions thereof, and if such opportunities were not chosen for part of the preferred route, an explanation of the reasons, including insufficient right-of-way and/or other land use constraints.