5 Part Miniseries – Are annual plan reviews required for all regulatory plans? (PHMSA OSRP)
John K. Carroll III
Associate Managing Director at Witt O'Brien's, LLC, Part of the Ambipar Group
In 2018, I posted a miniseries on annual review requirements for various regulations that many in oil and gas must attend to.?I still see these requirements confusing some, so I have decided to dust off the dust and repost, slightly updated.??That said, let’s kick off this 5-part miniseries. ?Today, we will discuss ?Oil Spill Response Plans (OSRP), 49 CFR Part 194, that fall under the Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA).
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As always, let’s first examine what the actual rule says.
§194.121???Response plan review and update procedures.
(a) Each operator shall update its response plan to address new or different operating conditions or information. In addition, each operator shall review its response plan in full at least every 5 years from the date of the last submission or the last approval as follows:
(1) For substantial harm plans, an operator shall resubmit its response plan to OPS every 5 years from the last submission date.
(2) For significant and substantial harm plans, an operator shall resubmit every 5 years from the last approval date.
(b) If a new or different operating condition or information would substantially affect the implementation of a response plan, the operator must immediately modify its response plan to address such a change and, within 30 days of making such a change, submit the change to PHMSA. Examples of changes in operating conditions that would cause a significant change to an operator's response plan are:
(1) An extension of the existing pipeline or construction of a new pipeline in a response zone not covered by the previously approved plan;
(2) Relocation or replacement of the pipeline in a way that substantially affects the information included in the response plan, such as a change to the worst-case discharge volume;
(3) The type of oil transported, if the type affects the required response resources, such as a change from crude oil to gasoline;
(4) The name of the oil spill removal organization;
(5) Emergency response procedures;
(6) The qualified individual;
(7) A change in the NCP or an ACP that has significant impact on the equipment appropriate for response activities; and
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(8) Any other information relating to circumstances that may affect full implementation of the plan.
(c) If PHMSA determines that a change to a response plan does not meet the requirements of this part, PHMSA will notify the operator of any alleged deficiencies, and provide the operator an opportunity to respond, including an opportunity for an informal conference, to any proposed plan revisions and an opportunity to correct any deficiencies.
(d) An operator who disagrees with a determination that proposed revisions to a plan are deficient may petition PHMSA for reconsideration, within 30 days from the date of receipt of PHMSA's notice. After considering all relevant material presented in writing or at the conference, PHMSA will notify the operator of its final decision. The operator must comply with the final decision within 30 days of issuance unless PHMSA allows additional time.
Have you finished reading? Did you notice something missing? The word “annual” is not listed once. If you open the eCFR linked above, the word annual is not listed anywhere in PHMSA’s rule. Now, does that mean there’s not an annual requirement? No. PHMSA, like many other agencies, makes complying a game of cat and mouse for this particular part. To find what is required annually, one would need to know, through one’s crystal ball, that you should look at 49 CFR Part 195 for this. I’m not going to try to provide logic for why they don’t reference this anywhere in the rule; however, 49 CFR Part 195 addresses hazardous liquids, and under §195.402 it states:
(a) General. Each operator shall prepare and follow for each pipeline system a manual of written procedures for conducting normal operations and maintenance activities and handling abnormal operations and emergencies. This manual shall be reviewed at intervals not exceeding 15 months, but at least once each calendar year, and appropriate changes made as necessary to insure that the manual is effective. This manual shall be prepared before initial operations of a pipeline system commence, and appropriate parts shall be kept at locations where operations and maintenance activities are conducted.
A little translation: Where it states, “and emergencies” is satisfied by 49 CFR Part 194 for oil pipelines; therefore, yes, one does have an “annual plan review” requirement and subsequently must log it in one’s OSRP revision record.
Bottom line, regardless of what a rule says, one should review their plan annually to ensure contact tables are current and reflect on any changes that may have occurred during the year. These are intended to be used during a response and having accurate and current information is important.
Other Important Actionable Items:
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For a complete listing of archived blogs and compliance insights, click here. Past blogs cover training requirements, clarification on additional confusing elements within the above rules, and much more.
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