On Tuesday, APGA staff spoke at the Kentucky Pipeline Safety Seminar. This event was done in coordination with the Kentucky Gas Association (KGA), the Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC), and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). The focus of APGA’s presentation was the PHMSA Natural Gas Distribution Infrastructure Safety and Modernization Grant Program, which is available only to public natural gas utilities. While the application period for 2022 closed on August 8, there was still much to talk about. For those that were not aware of the grant program, some of the basics were detailed, and the timeline for this year’s process was described, including the fact that those awarded could be informed in November 2022. The APGA resources were also highlighted. Since this program will last for five years, the deadline for 2023 applications will be here soon, so the group discussed ways public natural gas utilities can learn from this year and prepare for the next time.
APGA staff also took a few minutes to update Kentucky pipeline operators on the APGA committees and how to get involved. As well, the upcoming Operations Conference was highlighted, as the attendees at this Pipeline Safety Seminar would appreciate the content planned for the October conference in Savannah, such as speakers sharing about Pipeline Safety Management Systems, leak detection, and cybersecurity.
To access APGA’s webpage on the PHMSA grant program,
click here. To learn more about KGA,
click here.
For questions on this article, please contact Stuart Saulters of APGA staff by phone at 202-544-1334 or by email at
ssaulters@apga.org.