§ 191.3 - Definitions.

§ 191.3 Definitions.

Cross Reference

Link to an amendment published at 86 FR 63295, Nov. 15, 2021.

As used in this part and the PHMSA Forms referenced in this part -

Administrator means the Administrator, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration or his or her delegate

Confirmed Discovery means when it can be reasonably determined, based on information available to the operator at the time a reportable event has occurred, even if only based on a preliminary evaluation.

Gas means natural gas, flammable gas, or gas which is toxic or corrosive;

Incident means any of the following events:

(1) An event that involves a release of gas from a pipeline, gas from an underground natural gas storage facility (UNGSF), liquefied natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, refrigerant gas, or gas from an LNG facility, and that results in one or more of the following consequences:

(i) A death, or personal injury necessitating in-patient hospitalization;

(ii) Estimated property damage of $122,000 or more, including loss to the operator and others, or both, but excluding the cost of gas lost. For adjustments for inflation observed in calendar year 2021 onwards, changes to the reporting threshold will be posted on PHMSA's website. These changes will be determined in accordance with the procedures in appendix A to part 191.

(iii) Unintentional estimated gas loss of three million cubic feet or more.

(2) An event that results in an emergency shutdown of an LNG facility or a UNGSF. Activation of an emergency shutdown system for reasons other than an actual emergency within the facility does not constitute an incident.

(3) An event that is significant in the judgment of the operator, even though it did not meet the criteria of paragraph (1) or (2) of this definition.

LNG facility means a liquefied natural gas facility as defined in § 193.2007 of part 193 of this chapter;

Master Meter System means a pipeline system for distributing gas within, but not limited to, a definable area, such as a mobile home park, housing project, or apartment complex, where the operator purchases metered gas from an outside source for resale through a gas distribution pipeline system. The gas distribution pipeline system supplies the ultimate consumer who either purchases the gas directly through a meter or by other means, such as by rents;

Municipality means a city, county, or any other political subdivision of a State;

Offshore means beyond the line of ordinary low water along that portion of the coast of the United States that is in direct contact with the open seas and beyond the line marking the seaward limit of inland waters;

Operator means a person who engages in the transportation of gas;

Outer Continental Shelf means all submerged lands lying seaward and outside the area of lands beneath navigable waters as defined in Section 2 of the Submerged Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1301) and of which the subsoil and seabed appertain to the United States and are subject to its jurisdiction and control.

Person means any individual, firm, joint venture, partnership, corporation, association, State, municipality, cooperative association, or joint stock association, and includes any trustee, receiver, assignee, or personal representative thereof;

Pipeline or Pipeline System means all parts of those physical facilities through which gas moves in transportation, including, but not limited to, pipe, valves, and other appurtenance attached to pipe, compressor units, metering stations, regulator stations, delivery stations, holders, and fabricated assemblies.

Regulated onshore gathering means a Type A, Type B, or Type C gas gathering pipeline system as determined in § 192.8 of this chapter.

Reporting-regulated gathering means a Type R gathering line as determined in § 192.8 of this chapter. A Type R gathering line is subject only to this part.

State includes each of the several States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico;

Transportation of gas means the gathering, transmission, or distribution of gas by pipeline, or the storage of gas in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce.

Underground natural gas storage facility (UNGSF) means an underground natural gas storage facility or UNGSF as defined in § 192.3 of this chapter.

[35 FR 320, Jan. 8, 1970, as amended by Amdt. 191-5, 49 FR 18960, May 3, 1984; Amdt. 191-10, 61 FR 18516, Apr. 26, 1996; Amdt. 191-12, 62 FR 61695, Nov. 19, 1997; 68 FR 11749, Mar. 12, 2003; 70 FR 11139, Mar. 8, 2005; 75 FR 72905, Nov. 26, 2010; Amdt. 191-24, 81 FR 91871, Dec. 19, 2016; Amdt. 191-25, 82 FR 7997, Jan. 23, 2017; Amdt. 191-27, 85 FR 8125, Feb. 12, 2020; 86 FR 2237, Jan. 11, 2021; Amdt. 191-30, 86 FR 63295, Nov. 15, 2021]