Safety management in the transport of dangerous substances through pipeline

Pipelines are an important, and sometimes a vital, means of transport of a variety of hazardous substances such as crude oil, its derivatives and natural gas. In general, they offer a practical and economical means to transport large volumes of hazardous substances from their producer to a wide range of customers over long distances. Moreover, they have reliability and, if compared to other modes of transport, few associated impacts on the environment. For all these reasons pipeline networks are growing rapidly. The main disadvantages of pipelines are: high investment costs and a certain lack of flexibility in regard to delivery points and quantities of transported substance. The use of well planned, constructed, properly operated and maintained pipelines generally represents a safe mode of transport both for the environment and human health. However, like fixed installations handling hazardous substances, in case of accidents, these may be a serious hazard to human health and safety and to the environment (especially soil and water). External interference is the most frequent cause of pipeline accidents in the EU (European Union) and UNECE (United Nations Economic Commission for Europe) region. Although pipeline regulatory provisions and safety performance in certain ENECE countries has been developed to high standards, in the rest of the UNECE region there are important gaps relative to regulations and requirements concerning the safety of pipeline operation to prevent incidents and to limit their consequences for human health and the environment. So, against the need both for further improvements and, as many pipelines cross borders between two or more countries, for harmonization across the UNECE region of the pipeline safety performance, there are activities at EU and UNECE level on the control of the hazards arising from transport of dangerous substances through pipeline. On the base of these activities, the aim of this document is to give some key elements which are peculiar to pipeline safety management by both operators and competent authorities. A lot of these elements have been considered in the document "UNECE safety guidelines/good practices for pipelines"[1] that a group is drawing up within the two UNECE Convention on transboundary industrial accidents and on the transboundary watercourses use and protection. In consideration of the Italian pipeline network, mainly of the complex gas transmission system, Ministry for environment and land protection of Italy, appointing experts from the Institute for Atmospheric Pollution of the National Research Council, has attended to this UNECE activity in which has also involved Italian pipeline operators.