Natural Gas Safety in Pennsylvania

In Pennsylvania, the Public Utility Commission approved a proposed stipulation under which a natural gas local distribution company (LDC), Peoples Natural Gas Company, agreed to pay a $50,000 civil penalty in settlement of various pipeline safety infractions.

The stipulation stemmed from allegations that the company had failed to correctly classify and document gas leaks on its system and make necessary and appropriate repairs in a timely manner. In addition to the civil penalty, which cannot be recovered from ratepayers and is to be paid to the state’s general fund, the settlement requires the LDC to enhance and augment its standard operating procedures (SOPs) as well as its emergency planning and response guidelines.

More specifically, the agreement orders the LDC to take the following corrective actions with regard to certain of the company’s internal practices and procedures:

1. Monitor and inspect vented Class 1 leaks daily during frost or frozen ground conditions;
2. Modify its SOPs to include action criteria for leaks that are consistent with the Gas Piping Technology Committee guide;
3. Implement new expanded guidelines that require venting of a Class 1 leak as a last resort;
4. Implement written guidelines that identify when and how short, leaking sections of main are to be considered for replacement versus repair, and that promote removal or replacement over repair;
5. Complete training associated with these changes; and
6. Work to modify the LDC’s annual capital budget categories to allow for more unplanned pipe replacement projects, thereby promoting pipe replacement versus repair. (C-2016-2437295)