U.S. senators want tighter pipeline rules

WASHINGTON, March 18 (UPI) -- U.S. pipeline regulators are called on to address rules that let operators avoid reporting on spikes in line pressure, two U.S. senators said.

U.S. Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, both D-Calif., called on the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration to close loopholes in their regulatory mechanisms for pipeline operators.

"We urge you to issue this order immediately under your existing emergency authority to protect public safety," the senators said in a letter to the PHMSA.

California's Public Utilities Commission ordered Pacific Gas and Electric to reduce pressure on its pipelines by 20 percent. Four pipelines should be examined for damage because pipeline pressure recently exceeded legal limits, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

PG&E twice breached the federal threshold on the San Bruno, Calif., gas pipeline but didn't inspect the welds on the system, the newspaper reported. A September gas explosion killed eight people and destroyed 38 homes in San Bruno after a weld seam broke on the pipeline.

PHMSA told the newspaper the company's assessment of pressure rules was "incorrect" but said more probing was needed to determine if the company "misapplied" the rules.