New legislation is making pipeline safety the law in California. Three new bills were signed in to law mandating safe practices for the natural gas pipeline industry. In recent years, pipeline accidents have been far too common, negatively impacting many families and communities. These new laws are a huge step in the right direction – towards safety.
“Better pipeline coatings are just one aspect of overall pipeline safety and health,” said Eric Nenninger, a pipeline specialist at Thomas Industrial Coatings. “Build-quality and inspecting for build-quality is where pipeline safety starts. Accidents often arise from mistakes so minimizing the risk for oversight before we even start coating always creates a better end result.”
While the pipeline industry is unique, it’s also like all other industries – it can never be too safe. Safety is a continual loop that starts with quality construction. A solid pipeline, from pipe walls to welds, needs an equally solid coating. Pipeline coatings help extend the healthy life-cycle for the entire pipeline. Mistakes in the early stages of construction and coating will leave pipeline maintenance on the defense. Ensuring quality from the start leaves room for preventative maintenance, always creating a safer, stronger pipeline.
There have been numerous pipeline failures and resulting explosions that led to the push for this legislation. As noted in this article from PaintSquare, the laws call for simple and clear change.
- AB-578 requires the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to adopt gas pipeline safety recommendations made by the NTSB.
- AB-861 prohibits a public utility from either cutting spending on operations and maintenance or increasing rates to recover expenses that were used to pay executive bonuses.
- AB-1546 requires the CPUC to adopt performance metrics for pipeline safety and evaluate the state’s gas utilities against those metrics. The commission will be able to levy penalties on the utility for poor performance.
These laws will ultimately result in a safer infrastructure, something everyone will benefit from. Read the full article on the legislation from our friends at PaintSquare.
