2012 -- H 7800

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LC01368

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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2012

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A N A C T

RELATING TO PUBLIC UTILITIES AND CARRIERS -- NATURAL GAS SAFETY ACT

     Introduced By: Representatives Handy, Valencia, and Walsh

     Date Introduced: February 28, 2012

     Referred To: House Environment and Natural Resources

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Title 39 of the General Laws entitled "Public Utilities and Carriers" is

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hereby amended by adding thereto the following chapter:

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     CHAPTER 29

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THE NATURAL GAS SAFETY ACT

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     39-29-1. Gas leak classification. -- (a) The administrator shall establish a natural gas

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leak classification standard to determine the degree or extent of the potential hazard resulting

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from gas leakage to persons, property or the environment due to leaking methane as a greenhouse

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gas and furthermore the administrator is directed to prescribe remedial actions, as prescribed in

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this title.

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     (b) All reported gas leaks shall be assessed a grade based on the following system:

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     (1) Grade 1. Any leak recognized as an existing or probable hazard to persons or

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property, and requires immediate repair of continuous action until the conditions are no longer

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hazardous. Provided, however, daily monitoring or surveillance shall not qualify as a “repair.”

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     (2) Grade 2A. Any leak recognized as non-hazardous to persons or property, but justifies

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schedule repair based on probable future hazard to persons or property. Repair is required within

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six (6) months with monitoring every two (2) weeks until repaired.

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     (3) Grade 2. Any leak recognized as non-hazardous to persons or property, any grade 3

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leak that could migrate under frost or other conditions in the judgment of the operating personnel

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at the site of the leak. Repair is required within 1 year with monitoring every six (6) months.

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     (4) Grade 3. Any leak recognized as non-hazardous at the time of detection or monitoring

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and may be expected to remain non-hazardous. Repair shall be required within thirty-six (36)

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months. The leak shall be re-surveyed during “mid-frost season,” so-called. The leak shall be re-

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evaluated during the next required leak survey or annually, whichever is less, and shall include a

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tree damage survey of any tree on public or private property within a forty feet (40’)

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circumference of the leak.

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     (c) Gas companies shall repair grade 1 leaks identified prior to December 31, 2010 on or

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before March 1, 2012. Operator shall repair grade 2 leaks identified prior to December 31, 2010

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on or before March 1, 2015. For all leaks identified after December 31, 2010, gas companies shall

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comply with the requirements of this chapter.

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     (d) It shall be the duty of each gas company to promptly respond to any notification of a

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gas leak or gas odor or any notification of damage to facilities by excavators or other outside

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sources to protect persons, property, and limit the amount of greenhouse gas expelled to the

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atmosphere.

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     (e) Any suspected damage to trees due to any gas leak from a utility owned pipeline,

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should be reported to the company responsible for inspection by a qualified arborist. Repairs,

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damages and replacement will be subject to the division’s rules and regulations.

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     (f) All buildings or structures within a determined underground gas leak migration area

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shall be checked for traces of natural gas. If a positive reading is detected, company personnel

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shall take appropriate action to protect persons and property, as well as grading the gas leak

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according to this chapter.

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     (g) The division shall promulgate rules and regulations necessary to carry out the

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provisions of this chapter. The rules and regulations shall require that companies subject to the

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administrator’s supervision who are responsible for the maintenance and repair of natural gas

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lines shall report annually to the administrator the grades of any leaks detected as part of any

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mandated compliance surveys.

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     39-29-2. Cast-iron main maintenance required. -- (a) For the purposes of this chapter

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“winter patrol cast-iron survey” means a survey performed by driving a gas sensing vehicle over

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all cast-iron mains during winter months to locate any leakage caused by freezing temperatures.

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     (b) A winter patrol cast-iron survey shall be deployed when any one of the following

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criteria are present:

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     (1) There are significant variations in temperature oscillating above and below thirty-two

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degrees fahrenheit (32º F); or

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     (2) When the ambient temperature is forecasted to remain at thirty-two degrees fahrenheit

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(32º F) or lower for seven (7) or more consecutive days and the system experiences three (3)

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breaks or more per day over two (2) successive days; or

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     (3) When the temperature falls below twenty degrees fahrenheit (20º F) and field verified

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frost depth conditions of twenty-four inches (24”) or greater exist.

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     (c) When deployed, the high-speed cast-iron survey will concentrate on four inch (4”),

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six inch (6”), and eight inch (8”) cast-iron mains and areas with historical cast-iron breaks.

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     39-29-3. Safety and transparency required. -- (a) The division of public utilities shall

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provide and make publicly available on the Internet all data and reports of all oversight and

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enforcement actions taken by the division’s safety department or any person or agency acting on

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their behalf involving distribution gas pipeline companies in the state of Rhode Island.

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     (b) Any data collected, pursuant to this chapter, shall include, but not be limited to, the

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following: requested and approved waivers; operations and maintenance (O&M) manual

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modifications; pilot programs; interpretations; notice of probable violations (NOPV); fines;

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warnings; appeals; field inspection reports; all operator qualification (OQ) personnel qualified to

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perform work on any distribution pipeline in Rhode Island; annual 3rd party damage reports; gas

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leakage information including repairs; annual leak backlog totals; lost gas due to leakage; and

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information on all repairs performed on leak grade types.

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     (c) The division shall update on its website postings to comply with this chapter within

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seven (7) business days of any change and post the date on which the information was updated. A

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public utility, pursuant to title 39, may also post the information required to be posted but is not

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required to do so.

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     (d) In the event an emergency, such as an earthquake, flood, fire or hurricane, severely

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disrupts the division’s normal business operations, the posting requirements in this part may be

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suspended. If the disruption lasts longer than one month, the division shall notify the Rhode

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Island court system and may seek a further exemption from the posting requirements.

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     (e) All website postings required by this chapter must be sufficiently prominent as to be

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readily accessible.

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     (f) If the division determines any of the information required by this chapter is or could

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be or used as a threat to the public and/or homeland security an industry secured database shall be

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created to allow only identified groups, organizations and labor unions access to said material.

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Rejection of access may only be redeemed by a proven threat or lack of credentials as a regular

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participant of division business.

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     39-29-4. Gas leakage environmental damage. -- (a) Any potential hazard resulting from

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gas leakage to persons, property or the environment due to leaking methane as a Greenhouse Gas

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(GHG) shall be prescribed remedial actions. Each gas company shall promptly respond to any

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notification of a gas leak, gas odor or any notification of damage to facilities by excavators or

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other outside sources to protect persons and property and limit the amount of GHG expelled to

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the atmosphere.

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     (b) Any suspected damage to trees due to any gas leak from a utility owned pipeline

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should be reported to the company responsible for inspection by a qualified arborist. Repairs,

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damages and replacements will be subject to the rules and regulations of the division of public

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utilities and the environmental affairs office.

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     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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LC01368

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N A C T

RELATING TO PUBLIC UTILITIES AND CARRIERS -- NATURAL GAS SAFETY ACT

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     This act would create a gas safety act to classify gas leaks and repair priorities and would

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require that reports of enforcement actions be made public.

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     This act would take effect upon passage.

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LC01368

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