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Ensuring Timely Pipeline Shutdowns in Emergencies: When to Install Rupture Mitigation Valves (2024)

Chapter: Appendix C: Industry Survey

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Previous Chapter: Appendix B: Timeline of Relevant Standards and Regulations

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Suggested Citation: "Appendix C: Industry Survey." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2024. Ensuring Timely Pipeline Shutdowns in Emergencies: When to Install Rupture Mitigation Valves. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/27521.

Appendix C

Industry Survey

The committee conducted industry outreach through an anonymized Alchemer form to collect information on valve installation, type, and spacing. This form was sent out to pipeline operators by three industry organizations: the American Gas Association, the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America, and the American Petroleum Institute. The text in Box C-1 accompanied the form and provided background information about the study. On the webpage, spreadsheets—one for hazardous liquid pipelines and one for gas transmission pipelines—were available for download (see Figures C-1 and C-2). To provide data about their pipeline systems, operators were asked to complete the appropriate spreadsheets based on their pipeline operations and submit the completed files to the committee through the anonymized Alchemer form.

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BOX C-1
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Automatic and Remote-Control Shutoff Valve Study Survey

At the request of Congress and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (the National Academies) are studying the feasibility of installing automatic and remote-control shutoff valves (ASVs and RCVs) or upgrading existing manual valves to an ASV/RCV capability on existing gas transmission (GT) and hazardous liquid (HL) transmission pipelines that could affect or are located within Class 3/4 locations and/or high consequence areas (HCAs).

As part of evaluating the overall feasibility of upgrading existing valves or installing ASVs/RCVs on existing gas transmission or hazardous liquid pipelines within HCAs, the National Academies are surveying pipeline operators. While the annual reports pipeline operators submit to PHMSA provide data and information on the miles of pipelines located within HCAs, PHMSA does not currently require operators to provide information on where pipeline segments that are located in or could affect HCAs are fitted with valves, the types of valves fitted, and the spacing between the valves.

This National Academies’ survey seeks to collect data on what currently exists in the field with respect to the number of valves, valve types, and the spacing between valves on HL and GT pipeline segments that could affect or are within Class 3/4 locations and HCAs. This data-gathering effort will assist the National Academies in estimating the potential impact(s) if PHMSA were to issue a rule requiring pipeline operators to either upgrade existing valves or retrofit existing pipelines within Class 3/4 locations or HCAs with ASVs/RCVs as per PHMSA’s recently enacted Rupture Mitigation Valve rule for newly constructed and entirely replaced segments of pipelines within Class 3/4 locations and HCAs.

The following survey(s) requests data on pipelines in each type of HCA and/or Class 3/4 locations. The spreadsheet(s) request data on the number of valves currently fitted to pipeline segments within HCAs, their type and spacing between the valves, the commodities transported, pipe length and diameter, and the decade of pipeline installation.

Per Section 15 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, any written materials provided to the National Academies must be made available to the public. Thus, the survey results are subject to public disclosure and will be made available upon request. The National Academies recognize that the specific location of valves may be considered critical infrastructure information. As such, the survey has been designed to assure anonymity by avoiding eliciting sensitive information, so please do not include personal or operator identifiers such as operator name/ID or email.