Resources
Department of Transportation (DOT):
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) – Office of Pipeline Safety
As one of ten agencies within the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), PHMSA works to protect the American public and the environment by ensuring the safe and secure movement of hazardous materials to industry and consumers by all transportation modes, including the nation’s pipelines.
The Office of Pipeline Safety is the Federal safety authority for ensuring the safe, reliable, and environmentally sound operation of the nation’s 2.3 million miles of natural gas and hazardous liquid pipelines.
To assure safety in the transport of hazardous gases and liquids in the nation’s pipelines, pipeline operators who perform covered tasks (and their contractors) must be qualified. Qualified means that an individual has been evaluated and can perform assigned covered tasks and recognize and react to abnormal operating conditions.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
The United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is an agency of the United States Department of Labor. Its mission is to prevent work-related injuries, illnesses, and occupational fatality by issuing and enforcing standards for workplace safety and health. The agency is headed by a Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor. OSHA federal regulations cover most private sector workplaces.
The law requires employers to provide their employees with working conditions that are free of known dangers. The regulations sets and enforces protective workplace safety and health standards. OSHA also provides information, training and assistance to workers and employers. Workers may file a complaint to have OSHA inspect their workplace if they believe that their employer is not following OSHA standards or that there are serious hazards.
Drug and Alcohol Testing
The Omnibus Transportation Employee Testing Act of 1991 requires drug and alcohol testing of safety-sensitive transportation employees in aviation, trucking, railroads, mass transit, pipelines, and other transportation industries. DOT publishes rules on who must conduct drug and alcohol tests, how to conduct those tests, and what procedures to use when testing. These regulations cover all transportation employers, safety-sensitive transportation employees, and service agents – roughly 10 million people.
Transportation Worker Identification Card (TWIC)
TWIC is a common identification credential for all personnel requiring unescorted access to secure areas of MTSA regulated facilities and vessels, and all mariners holding Coast Guard-issued credentials. Individuals who meet TWIC eligibility requirements will be issued a tamper-resistant credential containing the worker’s biometric (fingerprint template) to allow for a positive link between the card and the individual.
Congress directed the federal government, through the Maritime Transportation Security Act (MTSA), to issue a biometric security credential to individuals who require unescorted access to secure areas of facilities and vessels and all mariners holding Coast Guard- issued credentials or qualification documents. Controlling access to secure areas is critical to enhancing port security.
All workers who require unescorted access to secure areas of maritime facilities and vessels and all U.S. credentialed mariners are required to have a TWIC.
SafeGulf – What is it?
SafeGulf is the basic safety training standard developed by four major offshore oil companies: BP, Shell, Chevron and ExxonMobil. All contractors who perform offshore work for these operators must complete training in accordance with SafeGulf approved curriculum, pass a 100 question test, carry a SafeGulf Identification Card (these cards have no expiration date) and be listed in the SafeGulf database.