RCP is relocating the Baton Rouge office to a newer, more spacious location effective August 16, 2002.   The new address will be:

    RCP - Your Regulatory Compliance Partner
    3975 O'Neal Lane, Suite A
    Baton Rouge, LA 70816
    www.your-rcp.com

Our main Baton Rouge local phone number will remain the same: 225-755-7760.  The toll free number of our Baton Rouge office is 866-490-7799.  Our main toll free number (888-RCP-xYES or 888-727-9937), rings directly to our Houston office.  Please update your records accordingly, and pay us a visit sometime!

This notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) would require hazardous liquid pipeline operators to submit an annual report (proposed form RSPA F7000-1.1).  The report form asks for information that the Research and Special Programs Administration's (RSPA) Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS) does not currently collect, such as: breakout tank location and capacity; hazardous liquid pipeline mileage by State, diameter and decade installed.  The report will be due March 15 of each year for the previous calendar year, aligning with the annual reporting schedule for natural gas pipeline operators.  RSPA/OPS will use information from the report to more effectively compile national statistics on system inventory; analyze accidents; identify safety problems and potential solutions; and target inspections.  The proposed form asks for information similar to information RSPA/OPS currently collects for natural gas pipelines.  The proposed information collection is part of RSPA's/OPS's overall strategy for improving the quality of pipeline statistics and addresses a longstanding data gap in hazardous liquid pipeline inventory information.

Comments on this NPRM must be received on or before September 24, 2002.  You may submit written comments to the docket electronically at the following Web address: http://dms.dot.gov (docket number RSPA-01-9832).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Roger Little by phone at (202)366-4569, by e-mail at roger.little@rspa.dot.gov, or by mail at the Office of Pipeline Safety, Room 7128, 400 7th St. SW., Washington, DC, 20590, regarding the subject matter of this notice or to access comments in the docket.

The proposed rule, with the proposed information collection form, can be downloaded from RCP's website.

The Environmental Protection Agency is amending the Oil Pollution Prevention regulation promulgated under the authority of the Clean Water Act.  This rule includes requirements for Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) Plans, and for Facility Response Plans (FRPs).  The final rule includes new subparts outlining the requirements for various classes of oil; revises the applicability of the regulation; amends the requirements for completing SPCC Plans; and makes other modifications.  The final rule also contains a number of provisions designed to decrease regulatory burden on facility owners or operators subject to the rule, while preserving environmental protection.  The EPA expects that this rule will reduce the paperwork burden associated with SPCC requirements by approximately 40%, while making the regulation easier to understand and use.

This rule is effective August 16, 2002.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Hugo Paul Fleischman, Oil Program Center, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, at 703-603-8769 (fleischman.hugo@epa.gov); or the RCRA/Superfund Hotline at 800-424-9346 (in the Washington, DC metropolitan area, 703-412-9810) (epahotline@bah.com).  The Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD) Hotline number is 800-553-7672 (in the Washington, DC metropolitan area, 703-412-3323).  You may wish to visit the Oil Program's Internet site at www.epa.gov/oilspill.

Editor's note: This rule revision takes up 111 pages of the Federal Register, which translates to over 300 normal typewritten pages.  We have prepared a formatted version of this rule, 40 CFR Part 112, at the RCP's website.  Since this is a significant rulemaking that will affect thousands of facilities (including many pipeline and marine facility operators), we are conducting workshops on this regulation as described elsewhere in this newsletter.

In the Federal Register of June 5, 2002, RSPA published a Notice document to owners and operators of natural gas transmission systems, concerning revised forms for incident reporting and annual reporting (see our July, 2002 newsletter for additional information).  The Notice document contained the wrong Advisory Bulletin number.   The correct number is ADB-02-02, not ADB-02-01.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Roger Little, (202) 366-4569, or by e-mail, roger.little@rspa.dot.gov.

RSPA is requesting public participation in the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval process regarding the renewal of an existing RSPA/Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS) collection of information for Operator Qualification of Pipeline Personnel.  RSPA/OPS published a notice requesting public comment on April 18, 2002, and only one comment was received.  Because this was the only comment received, RSPA/OPS does not believe there is enough evidence to reduce the cost estimate of this information collection.  RSPA/OPS is offering the public another opportunity to comment on this information collection.  It is also requesting OMB approval for renewal of this information collection under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.  The public is invited to submit comments on ways to minimize the burden associated with collection of information related to the operator qualification requirements in the pipeline safety regulations, as well as other factors listed in the body of this notice.

Comments on this notice must be received within 30 days of July 17, 2002, to be assured of consideration.  Interested persons are invited to send comments directly to The Office of Management and Budget, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, 726 Jackson Place Washington, DC 20503 ATTN: Desk Officer for the Department of Transportation (Docket Number: RSPA-98-4957).  The docket can be viewed electronically at http://dms.dot.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Marvin Fell, (202) 366-6205, to ask questions about this notice; or write by e-mail to marvin.fell@rspa.dot.gov.

Comments are invited on:
(a) The need for the proposed collection of information for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques.

Respondents: Gas and hazardous liquid pipeline operators.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 50,000.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 466,667 hours.

In the Federal Register of January 16, 2002, DOT/RSPA published a Final Rule extending the regulations on managing the integrity of hazardous liquid and carbon dioxide pipelines that affect high consequence areas to operators with less than 500 miles of regulated pipelines.  Inadvertently, the date after which prior integrity assessments may qualify for use was incorrectly stated.  In §195.452(d)(2), (page 2144 of 67 FR 2136), the date after which prior assessments may qualify for use was incorrectly published as December 18, 2006.  The correct date is February 15, 1997.

For additional information, contact L. M. Furrow by phone at 202-366-4559, by fax at 202-366-4566, by mail at U.S. Department of Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590, or by E-mail at buck.furrow@rspa.dot.gov.

The American Petroleum Institute will conduct the API Gulf Coast Training & Development Conference at Moody Gardens Hotel at 7 Hope Boulevard in Galveston, TX 77554, October 23-25, 2002.  The conference program will provide you with tools to help meet industry's many challenges and a chance to have fun doing it in a beautiful, tropical setting!  Don't miss the session on Friday, October 25 from 10:30 am - 11:30 am about DOT Pipeline Training Requirements and Expectations (that's my presentation!).  Additional information is available at http://www.cvent.com/EventManagement/Summary/Summary.asp; Event code: K2O6T2872Q.  See you there!

The Office of Energy Projects is continuing the second phase of its Better Stakeholder Involvement Series with a workshop to be held in Denver, Colorado on Thursday, August 8, 2002 at the Red Lion Hotel Denver Central, 4040 Quebec Street, Denver, Colorado 80216, phone number 1-303-321-6666.  Interstate natural gas companies; Federal, state and local agencies; landowners and other non-governmental organizations interested in developing strategies for involving people in the pre-filing planning process for natural gas pipelines are invited to attend.

Discussion will include ideas outlined in staff's December 2001 report: "Ideas for Better Stakeholder Involvement In The Interstate Natural Gas Pipeline Planning Pre-Filing Process" (available on FERC's web-site at www.ferc.gov).   The intent is to identify ways to assist all involved parties in working together to resolve issues early in the pipeline planning process; help companies prepare and file complete applications; and to expedite the Commission's regulatory process, where appropriate.  The Denver workshop will focus on methods of communication and the dissemination of information to the stakeholders.  The workshop will include presentations from panel members sharing their experiences, and an open discussion forum for all participants.  The merits of any pending or planned pipeline projects will not be discussed.

If you plan to attend or have suggestions for the agenda, please respond by Friday, August 2, 2002 via facsimile to Roberta Coulter at 202/208-0353, or you may email the team at: gasoutreach@ferc.gov.  Please include in the response the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of all attendees from your organization.  Please consider, and forward to FERC, issues and/or questions you would like to have addressed at the meetings.  If you have any questions, you may contact any of the staff listed below:

Lauren O'Donnell  202/208-0325
Jeff Shenot  202/219-2178
Howard Wheeler  202/208-2299

Preliminary Workshop Agenda
The Denver meeting will be an interactive workshop that provides time for communication among the stakeholder groups.  The meeting is geared toward brainstorming and idea generation.  Speakers will address the following topics to set the stage for discussion.

Discussion Topics
* Elements of Company Public Participation Plans: Getting the Word Out
* The Land Agent's Viewpoint: Making Contact
* Project-Specific Website Development: Demonstrations
* Maintaining the Agency/Company Relationship: A Case Study
* Working with State and Federal Agencies: How Early is Too Early?
* The Citizen Perspective: Before You Come On My Land.

Editor's note: our thanks to Ben Cooper at AOPL for informing us about this, which is repeated from AOPL's newsletter: OPS this week posted notice of seven position vacancies, five of which will be new positions in OPS regional offices.  The regional positions are to provide technical and communications services to protect underground utilities (specifically pipelines) and to enhance pipeline security and emergency response.  These new employees will also work with state and federal permitting agencies on pipeline permitting issues and will perform technical assessments of pipeline IMP and OQ programs.  Two senior engineering positions were announced for tenure in Washington, DC. To learn more about the positions, go to http://ops.dot.gov/employment.htm.

On August 6, 2002, RSPA published the final rule defining high consequence for gas pipelines. The definition includes: current class 3 and 4 locations; facilities with persons who are mobility-impaired, confined, or hard to evacuate, and places where people gather for recreational and other purposes. For facilities with mobility-impaired, confined, or hard-to-evacuate persons and places where people gather, the corridor of protection from the pipeline is 300 feet, 660 feet or 1000 feet depending on the pipeline's diameter and operating pressure. This final rule is the first step in a two-step process to develop integrity management program requirements for gas transmission operators. In the second step, the Research and Special Programs Administration (RSPA) will propose requirements to improve the integrity of gas transmission pipelines located in these high consequence areas. This definition satisfies, in part, the Congressional mandate in 49 U.S.C. 60109 for RSPA to prescribe standards that establish criteria for identifying each gas pipeline facility located in a high-density population area.

RSPA developed the definition from the comments received on the notice of proposed rulemaking, and the earlier notice that invited public comment about integrity management concepts as they relate to gas pipelines. This rule is effective September 5, 2002, but it does not yet require any specific action by gas transmission pipeline operators. Action will not be required until RSPA issues integrity management program requirements that use the definition. .

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mike Israni by telephone at (202) 366-4571, by fax at (202) 366-4566, or by e-mail at mike.israni@rspa.dot.gov, regarding the subject matter of this rule. All materials in the docket may be accessed electronically at http://dms.dot.gov (Docket No. RSPA-00-7666). The final rule is available on RCP's website here.