In December 2015, Pipeline Safety Coalition leadership was instrumental in organizing the inaugural Mayors’ Council on Pipeline Safety (MCPS) conference at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This conference brought together mayors, elected officials, fire chiefs, first responders, government and non-government organizations, educators, and citizens with the goal of achieving safer American communities through collaborative efforts in a Chatham House Rule environment created to enhance open transparency.
The MCPS initiative defined a “short list” of pipeline safety priorities specific to American cities:
- Leak detection:
- mandates for upgrading leak detection protocol
- standardization of national regulatory leak detection class
- leak detection monitoring outside utility dictates
- regulation on frequency of surveys
- Mandates for automatic shut off valves
- Injunctive relief and prescriptive measures that ensure the safety of our citizens
These priorities were refined with two 2014-2015 US DOT PHMSA TAG applications awarded to MCPS.