Plastic Pipeline Safety Legislation Proposed by Lawmakers Thursday

Using as a backdrop the , two California state congressmen announced on Thursday plans to introduce legislation that would push state utility regulators to enforce federal safety recommendations.

"When the Legislature reconvenes, I will introduce legislation to make sure that the safety recommendations of the (National Transportation Safety Board,) the nation's authority on natural gas safety, are acted on by the (Public Utilities Commission,)" said Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo), California State Assemblymember.

Hill—who represents San Bruno, the site of last year's massive pipeline explosion—was joined by (D-Cupertino) who will act as co-author of the bill, and members of the complex's homeowners association.

"Through reform measures like the one we're announcing today, and my Assembly Bill 56 which was signed by the Governor last week, we're taking steps to move regulators and utilities in the right direction—changing the focus from profits to safety," Hill said.

The proposed legislation would hold the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) accountable for making sure utilities such as Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) follow safety recommendations from the NTSB, and AB 56 which goes into effect in January would among other things require utilities to install automatic shutoff valves on pipelines in highly populated areas.

"For years the NTSB's recommendations have been ignored by both utilities and regulators. As an independent body within the federal government, the NTSB is the best equipped to make recommendations to improve natural gas safety," Hill said.

"Unfortunately, the NTSB lacks the power to enforce those recommendations. If PG&E does not follow NTSB recommendations, it is incumbent on their regulator, the California Utilities Commission to compel them to."

Hill cited the Aug. 31 Cupertino explosion and a fire in Roseville Sept. 28 as frightening reminders that the pipelines--both which were the result of leaks in a type of pipe known by both PG&E and the CPUC for decades to be vulnerable to cracking--need inspection, repair or replacement.

The pipe used in both instances, made pre-1973 of "Aldyl A" by the DuPont Company, has a history of brittle fracturing and failure, something the company notified PG&E and others about in 1982. PG&E said there is about 6,000 feet of the 2-inch distribution pipeline running underneath the 417 units in the Northpoint complex, all of which PG&E has pledged to replace.

There is more than 1,200 miles of the pipe in the PG&E system.

The replacement process in the Northpoint neighborhood is expected to begin during the "holiday period" and could take up to year, Bruce Lawson said he and other homeowners were told by PG&E representatives.

"(PG&E) should have been (replacing the pipe) for the last 25 years," Hill said.

In the meantime the PG&E committed to , Lawson said. Lawson is the president of the board of directors for the complex's homeowners association.

Lawson, who has lived in the complex since 1989 and property manager Ron Shearer, said that the PG&E reps who have been to regular meetings at the complex are responsive to their questions and needs, but they are reserving total confidence until they see some results.

"The proof is in the pudding," Lawson said.

Karen Jacobson, a Northpoint resident since 1996, is thankful to see the proposed legislation and hopes that there are "enough people" at PG&E who will "save the day," but she harbors resentment for the years that have passed when PG&E and regulators could have taken steps that would have prevented the explosions and fires.

"There's some very, very corrupt people that think that they're immune from consequences, and they don't care about other people," she said.