PHMSA Announces Final Control Room Management Rule

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) published a final rule dictating the shape and content of new control room management programs for hazardous liquid, gas transmission and distribution pipelines.

The rules come into play where controllers use supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems. This is a final rule which the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America and the American Gas Association initially opposed, then suggested alternative language for. In the final rule, PHMSA does step away from some of the more objectionable language in the proposed rule it issued in September 2008.

Terry Boss, a senior vice president at INGAA, admits the rulemaking process was "contentious" but lauds PHMSA's ultimate publication of a "good, consensus final rule." INGAA has been participating in development of a "Common Gas Control Manual" under the auspices of the Southern Gas Association. That document is almost complete. It is expected to provide additional specificity beyond some of the general requirements in the PHMSA final rule. One change companies must make to come into compliance with that rule, for example, is revisions in the hours of service SCADA employees work. The PMHSA final rule provides some flexibility, there, Boss explains. The SGA manual will provide specifics which, if companies adhere to them, will essentially put them in good shape with regard to PHMSA's expectations.

The new rule became effective on Feb. 1, 2010. Control room management programs must be written by Aug. 1, 2011 and implemented by Feb. 1, 2012.

The SCADA rule grows out of the Pipeline Inspection, Protection, Enforcement, and Safety Act of 2006 (PIPES) Act which required PHMSA to set standards for a new human factors management plan. The most controversial aspects of PHMSA's proposed rule of 2008 were its definitions of ``controller'' and ``control room'' and the requirement to conduct a 100% baseline data point verification of SCADA systems. Pipeline operators generally commented that the first was too vague and the second would entail significant cost for very limited benefit.

In the final rule, PHMSA narrowed the definition of a controller to eliminate persons who only use SCADA data incidentally and thus cannot directly affect pipeline safety. The definition now includes only those persons who monitor SCADA data from a control room and have “operational authority and accountability for the remote operational functions of the pipeline facility as defined by the pipeline operator.'' The definition of control room is also narrowed, but it would take too much space to explain the complexities of the new definition.