Interpretation Response #PI-23-0006
Below is the interpretation response detail and a list of regulations sections applicable to this response.
Interpretation Response Details
Response Publish Date:
Company Name: Kinder Morgan Operation Support Group
Individual Name: Mr. Jaime Hernandez
Location State: TX Country: US
View the Interpretation Document
Response text:
Mr. Jaime Hernandez
Director, Engineering Codes and Standards
Kinder Morgan Operation Support Group
1001 Louisiana Street
Houston, TX 77002
Dear Mr. Hernandez:
In a letter to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), dated February 8, 2023, you requested an interpretation of the Federal pipeline safety regulations in 49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 192 with respect to the applicability of § 192.612 to your Tejas 520-200 30-inch diameter and Tejas 520-213 14-inch diameter pipelines (Tejas Pipelines) that cross the San Jacinto River.
You stated that on May 24, 2022, a tugboat had exposed the Tejas Pipelines.You investigated the incident and determined that the event was not reportable and was not a safety-related condition. In addition, you determined that the Tejas Pipelines do not fall within the applicability of § 192.612 for underwater inspection and reburial of pipelines in the Gulf of Mexico and its inlets.
On January 19, 2023, the Texas Railroad Commission (TRRC) informed you that TRRC believed the Tejas Pipelines fall within the scope of § 192.612. However, you asserted that the Tejas Pipelines do not fall within the scope of § 192.612 because they are not located within the Gulf of Mexico and its inlets for several reasons. First, you stated the location of the Tejas Pipelines is not an inlet to the Gulf of Mexico because it is separated from the Gulf of Mexico by multiple bodies of water, including the San Jacinto River, Tabbs Bay, Trinity Bay and Galveston Bay. Second, you stated that the location in question is not open directly to the sea because it is separated from the Gulf of Mexico by the bodies of water listed above, including Galveston Bay. In addition, you stated that Galveston Bay is the inlet to the Gulf of Mexico, not any bodies of water farther upstream. You also provided overview maps of the location of the Tejas Pipelines and requested an interpretation as to the applicability § 192.612 to the Tejas Pipelines.
Section 192.612 requires underwater inspection and reburial of pipelines in the Gulf of Mexico and its inlets. The Gulf of Mexico and its inlets are defined in § 192.3 to mean "the waters from the mean high water mark of the coast of the Gulf of Mexico and its inlets open to the sea (excluding rivers, tidal marshes, lakes, and canals) seaward to include the territorial sea and Outer Continental Shelf to a depth of 15 feet (4.6 meters), as measured from the mean low water" (emphasis added). The Tejas Pipelines do not fall within the scope of § 192.612 because according to the maps provided, they cross the San Jacinto River. Rivers are excluded from the definition of the Gulf of Mexico and its inlets.
For additional background and reference, PHMSA adopted § 192.612(a) in 1991 requiring each operator to conduct an underwater inspection of its pipelines in the Gulf of Mexico and its inlets.1 As PHMSA explained at the time, the rule was in response to a number of significant pipeline accidents involving natural gas and hazardous liquid pipelines buried in shallow waters that were struck by fishing and other vessels. On July 24, 1987, a fishing vessel struck and ruptured an 8-inch diameter natural gas liquid pipeline while maneuvering in shallow waters resulting in the deaths of two crew members. The pipeline originally had been buried, but due to substantial erosion, the pipeline reportedly was exposed at the time of the incident. On October 3, 1989, a fishing vessel struck a gas transmission pipeline, resulting in the death of eleven of fourteen crew members. An investigation of the incident determined the pipeline had become exposed.
1 Inspection and Burial of Offshore Gas and Hazardous Liquid Pipelines, Final Rule, 56 FR 63764 (Dec. 5, 1991); Pipeline Safety: Periodic Underwater Inspections, Final Rule, 69 FR 48400 (Aug. 10, 2004).
With that regulatory background in mind, the May 24, 2022, tugboat exposure suggests the Tejas Pipelines may potentially face similar exposure risks as pipelines in the Gulf of Mexico and its inlets. Therefore, while the Tejas Pipelines may not fall within the scope of § 192.612, the pipeline operator is responsible for safely operating its pipelines and for meeting other applicable 49 CFR Part 192 requirements to maintain pipeline safety PHMSA recommends you determine if the exposure poses a safety hazard, and if so, promptly take any actions necessary to ensure pipeline safety, including if appropriate, to notify the NRC, mark the location, and bury the pipeline so that exposure does not present a hazard.
In addition, PHMSA reminds you that § 192.613(a) and (b), which are applicable to all gas pipelines regulated under 49 CFR Part 192, require an operator to have and implement continuing surveillance procedures and take appropriate action to address, among other things, "unusual operating and maintenance conditions." Further, 192.703(b) requires operators to replace, repair, or remove unsafe pipeline segments." The location of this pipeline is in the waters of the "Houston Ship Channel." Ships and barges travel through this area and a pipeline with inadequate soil cover and depth below the water's bottom would likely be a condition requiring appropriate action or it may be unsafe.
If we can be of further assistance, please contact Tewabe Asebe at 202-366-5523.
Sincerely,
John A. Gale
Director, Office of Standards
and Rulemaking