PUC Denies Conventional Oil & Gas Industry Petition To Reconsider Regulation Of Class One Natural Gas Gathering Pipelines

The Public Utility Commission published notice in the April 1 PA Bulletin it has denied a petition by conventional oil and gas drillers to reconsider regulation of Class One natural gas gathering pipelines.

On December 8, 2022, the Commission adopted an order asserting jurisdiction over Class 1 natural gas gathering pipelines and certain liquified natural gas (LNG) facilities pursuit to the Gas and Hazardous Liquids Pipelines Act (Act 127) and in response to amendments to federal pipeline safety regulations by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.

The Pennsylvania Independent Oil & Gas Association filed a Petition for Reconsideration (Petition) requesting the Commission to reconsider its determination that certain Class 1 gathering lines, specifically Type R lines, are subject to Act 127 registration and assessment given that such lines are subject only to annual and incident reporting requirements under Part 191 regulations and are not subject to the broader safety requirements under Part 192 regulations.

At its March 16 meeting, the PUC denied PIOGA’s request for reconsideration regarding Act 127 registration but will grant clarification as to Act 127 assessments.

Specifically, they found  Act 127 gives the Commission jurisdiction over Type R intrastate pipeline operators and requires these operators to register with the Commission on an annual basis and report the location of the pipeline by class and approximate aggregate miles for inclusion in the Commission’s registry.

The Commission also requires each pipeline operator, regardless of class location, to disclose in its initial registration and in each annual renewal the country of manufacture for all tubular steel products used in the exploration, gathering or transportation of natural gas or hazardous liquids.

However, consistent with Act 127, as discussed further below, we will not assess these operators and will not require them to file Part 191 reports with the Commission at this time, pending PHMSA development of new reporting requirements.

Click Here for a copy of the PUC’s order related to the PIOGA petition.

PUC Docket No. M-2012-2282031

PA Oil & Gas Public Notice Dashboards:

-- Pennsylvania Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - March 25 to 31; More Violations At Equitrans Gas Storage Area; Spring Walk Yields Hissing Gas Well On State Game Lands  [PaEN] 

-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices/Opportunities To Comment - April 1  [PaEN]

-- DEP Posts 55 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In April 1 PA Bulletin  [PaEN]

PA Oil & Gas Compliance Reports

-- Feature: 60 Years Of Fracking, 20 Years Of Shale Gas: Pennsylvania’s Oil & Gas Industrial Infrastructure Is Hiding In Plain Sight [PaEN]

-- Conventional Oil & Gas Well Owners Failed To File Annual Production/Waste Generation Reports For 61,655 Wells; Attorney General Continues Investigation Of Road Dumping Wastewater  [PaEN]

-- DEP Issued 754 Notices Of Violation For Defective Oil & Gas Well Casing, Cementing, The Fundamental Protection Needed To Prevent Gas Migration, Groundwater & Air Contamination, Explosions  [PaEN]

-- DEP Report Finds: Conventional Oil & Gas Drillers Routinely Abandon Wells; Fail To Report How Millions Of Gallons Of Waste Is Disposed; And Non-Compliance Is An ‘Acceptable Norm’  [PaEN]

-- DEP 2021 Oil & Gas Program Annual Report Shows Conventional Oil & Gas Operators Received A Record 610 Notices Of Violation For Abandoning Wells Without Plugging Them  [PaEN]

-- PA Oil & Gas Industry Has Record Year: Cost, Criminal Convictions Up; $3.1 Million In Penalties Collected; Record Number Of Violations Issued; Major Compliance Issues Uncovered; Evidence Of Health Impacts Mounts  [PaEN]

NewsClips:

-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: As Shell Shuts Down New Beaver County Petrochemical Plant For Repairs, And Burns Off Natural Gas In Flares, Company Says It Hasn’t Exceeded Air Emission Limits

-- Shell Petrochemical Plant Beaver County: Bad And Dangerous Start; Shell Shut Down Part Of Plant For Repairs, Beings Full Natural Gas, Flammable Gases Flaring Operations For Unknown Period

-- Beaver County Times: Expect ‘Continuous’ Flaring- Burning Off Natural Gas, Flammable Gases At Shell Petrochemical Plant In Beaver County

-- BreatheProject.org /Reddit: March 31 Video Showing Shell Petrochemical Plant Still Flaring Natural Gas, Still Using Hose To Cool Barrel Tower Around Flare

-- AP: Probe Of Reading Chocolate Factory Explosion Centers On Natural Gas Pipeline

-- Guest Essay: Protect This Place - Fracking Threatens The Allegheny Plateau And Its Biodiversity - By Lisa C. Leib, Pittsburgh

-- Marcellus Drilling News/Argus Media: Wild Swings In Natural Gas Price ‘Here To Stay For Foreseeable Future’

-- Marcellus Drilling News: Consultant Suggests Drillers Fight Low Natural Gas Prices By Choking Wells 50% [To Reduce Supply]

-- Marcellus Drilling News: Acting DEP Secretary Disappoints By Spouting Enviro Justice Nonsense

Related Articles This Week:

-- PJM This Week Sends Penalty Assessments Of Up To $2 Billion To Electric Generators That Failed To Perform During December’s Winter Storm Elliot; Natural Gas Power Plants Had 63% Of Outages  [PaEN]

-- PUC Denies Conventional Oil & Gas Industry Petition To Reconsider Regulation Of Class One Natural Gas Gathering Pipelines [PaEN]

-- 22 Groups Express Concerns With Pennsylvania’s Carbon Storage Plans, Capacity To Regulate Injection Wells  [PaEN]

-- Guest Essay: A Conservative Argument For Clean Energy -- Follow The Market, Fossil Fuels Are No Bargain - By Dave Jenkins,  Conservatives For Responsible Stewardship    [PaEN]

-- Washington & Jefferson College Hosts April 5 Webinar On Justice40 - Bringing Energy Transition Benefits To Disadvantaged Communities  [PaEN]

-- PUC Urges Consumers To Contact Utilities About Payment Of Past-Due Or High Bills As Winter Moratorium Ends March 31

-- PUC Concludes 2022 Pottstown Explosion Investigation Finding No Evidence Natural Gas Service Contributed To Deadly Event

[Posted: March 31, 2023]


4/3/2023

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