Transportation of Hazardous Liquid by Pipeline Petition for Waiver; Alyeska Pipeline Service Company

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Research and Special Programs Administration

[Docket No. P-94-2W; Notice 1]

Transportation of Hazardous Liquid by Pipeline Petition for

Waiver; Alyeska Pipeline Service Company

SUMMARY: Alyeska Pipeline Service Company (Alyeska) has petitioned the

Research and Special Programs Administration (RSPA) for an amendment to

the May 19, 1975, waiver from compliance with the coating and cathodic

protection requirements of 49 CFR 195.238(a)(5) and 195.242(a)

regarding buried mainline insulated piping. RSPA proposes to grant the

amendment with the noted stipulations.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before July 24, 1995.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: L.E. Herrick, 202-366-5523 regarding

the subject matter of this notice or the Dockets Unit, 202-366-5046,

regarding copies of this notice or other material that is referenced

herein.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to the Dockets Branch, U.S.

Department of Transportation, 400 Seventh Street SW., Washington, DC,

20590. All comments and Docket material may be reviewed in the Dockets

Branch, room 8421, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday

through Friday, except federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: By letters dated March 19 and May 3, 1975,

Alyeska requested a waiver from compliance with the coating and

cathodic protection requirements of 49 CFR 195.238(a)(5) and 195.242(a)

with respect to thermally insulated mainline piping on the Trans-Alaska

Pipeline System (TAPS). 49 CFR 195.238(a)(5) requires that each

component in a hazardous liquid pipeline that is to be buried or

submerged must have an external protective coating that supports any

supplemental cathodic protection. In addition, if an insulating-type

coating is used, it must have low moisture absorption and provide high

electrical resistance. 49 CFR 195.242(a) requires a cathodic protection

system be installed for all buried or submerged hazardous liquid

facilities to mitigate corrosion that might result in a structural

failure. A test procedure must be developed to determine whether

adequate cathodic protection has been achieved.

The affected areas were specified as (1) three special buried,

refrigerated sections totaling 4.3 miles, (2) approximately 240 short

buried transitions sections, each approximately 60-80 feet, and (3)

approximately 20 buried ``sag bend'' sections each approximately 120

feet long.

On May 19, 1975, RSPA granted Alyeska the requested waiver (Docket

No. Pet. 75-41). The waiver was granted on the premise that the applied

thermal insulation design would mitigate corrosion from occurring under

insulation. Although the thermal insulation design has been generally

effective on the buried insulated mainline piping in preventing thawing

of the permafrost and external corrosion that requires repair based on

structural analysis of the pipe using methods prescribed by 49 CFR

195.416(h), the design has not prevented all corrosion from occurring.

During routine internal inspection tool corrosion surveys, Alyeska

reported evidence of corrosion on 300 of 1850 approximately 40 foot

long pipe joints covered by the waiver (16 percent). Alyeska reported

this corrosion to OPS on September 2, 1994 by letter. To date, all

fifteen joints that have been excavated have been found to have non-

injurious corrosion.

Accordingly, RSPA proposes to amend the May 1975 waiver prohibiting

further installations on TAPS of buried mainline piping coated with

thermal insulation not meeting all coating and cathodic protection

requirements of CFR 195.238(a)(5) and 195.242(a).

RSPA further proposes to allow Alyeska to continue under the May

1975 waiver regarding coating and cathodic [[Page 30154]] protection

requirements of 49 CFR 195.238(a)(5) and 195.242(a) for existing

insulated piping addressed by the waiver, subject to the following

amendments:

1. Alyeska will continue to inspect all thermally insulated

mainline pipe by a program of annual internal inspection tool corrosion

surveys capable of detecting and assessing potentially injurious

corrosion. RSPA's Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS) and Alyeska concur

that Alyeska should conduct the next internal inspection tool corrosion

survey during the spring of 1996, a period of approximately 18 months

from the previous survey. This one-time deviation from an annual

schedule is required to place the timing of internal inspection tool

corrosion surveys in the early spring of the year.

Running the survey in the spring of 1996 will minimize the adverse

affects of wax precipitation on data quality, which would be

encountered if a summer or fall 1995 survey were conducted and will

avoid the serious weather constraints of a survey taking place during

the 1995/1996 winter. Running the survey in the spring of 1996 will

permit the completion of scheduled improvements to the corrosion

inspection tool. Running the survey in the spring of 1996 will also

allow full evaluation of that data with data from the survey conducted

during the summer/fall of 1994.

Subsequent internal inspection tool surveys will continue to be

conducted annually until OPS determines from the technical data

presented by Alyeska that a reduced monitoring frequency is justified.

2. If evaluation of the internal inspection tool corrosion survey

data indicates areas of potentially injurious corrosion:

A. An excavation and evaluation of actual corrosion found shall be

made in accordance with 49 CFR 195.416(h) to determine if structural

repairs are necessary.

B. Structural repairs, if required shall be made in accordance with

requirements of ASME B31.4 and Alyeska's Maintenance and Repair Manual

(MR-48).

C. Recoating and cathodic protection of excavated piping will be

applied in accordance with the requirements of 49 CFR 195.238(a)(5) and

195.242(a).

3. Alyeska will submit to OPS the following engineering studies,

which may provide the technical basis for future modification of this

proposed waiver.

A. A detailed study of all insulated joints with identified

corrosion including a comparison with joints previously identified as

being corroded. Results will be used to evaluate the ability of

internal inspection tools used on the TAPS to reliably and repeatedly

detect, measure and assess corrosion that may impact structural

integrity. Results of this study may also be used to provide the most

desirable location to do at least one investigation of the corrosion

mechanism described in item 3B below.

B. A completed analysis of mechanisms of corrosion under insulation

to determine if the observed corrosion is active or dormant will be

completed. This study will include review of internal inspection tool

corrosion survey data, field observations from at least one dig and

laboratory testing to confirm corrosion mechanisms. Field testing may

include the installation of corrosion monitoring devices such as

electrical resistance probes or corrosion rate coupons.

C. No later than December 1, 1996, a completed feasibility study of

remediation designs and options to be used for the effective control of

corrosion under mainline insulated piping. The feasibility study will

consider corrosion mechanisms determined previously. A schedule will be

provided so that OPS will have the opportunity to witness the internal

inspection tool corrosion survey evaluation and installation of any

remedial corrective systems.

Interested parties are invited to comment on the proposed amendment

to waiver by submitting in duplicate such data, views, or arguments as

they may desire. RSPA specifically requests comments on the adequacy of

the proposed action regarding 195.238(a)(5) and 195.242(a). Comments

should identify the Docket and Notice numbers, and be submitted to the

Dockets Unit.

All comments received before July 24, 1995 will be considered

before final action is taken. Late filed comments will be considered so

far as practicable. No public hearing is contemplated, but one may be

held at a time and place set in a Notice in the Federal Register if

requested by an interested person desiring to comment at a public

hearing and raising a genuine issue.

Issued in Washington, DC on June 1, 1995.

Cesar De Leon,

Acting Associate Administrator for Pipeline Safety.

[FR Doc. 95-13930 Filed 6-6-95; 8:45 am]

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