Federal regulators are proposing a series of rules changes aimed at toughening safety requirements for millions of miles of gas distribution pipelines nationwide following a string of gas explosions in Massachusetts in 2018. These proposed changes are designed to improve safety and ease risk through the improvement of emergency response plans, integrity management plans, operation manuals and other steps, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. The proposal calls for improved construction procedures to minimize the risk of overpressurized pipelines and updated management programs to prepare for over-pressurization incidents. The changes require new regulator stations to be designed with secondary pressure relief valves and remote gas monitoring to prepare gas distribution systems to avoid overpressurization and to limit damage during those incidents. Finally, the plan calls for strengthening response plans for gas pipeline emergencies, including requirements for operators to contact local emergency responders and keep customers and the affected public informed of what to do in the event of an emergency.
https://www.theday.com/state/20230825/new-gas-pipeline-rules-floated-following-2018-blasts-in-massachusetts/