3702.1 The Natural Gas Utility's leak detection, classification, and repair personnel shall meet the federal training requirements for natural gas operations, maintenance, and emergencies (49 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 192). The reporting and repair requirements for gas leaks and odor complaints shall follow four steps:
(a) Respond to all leaks and odor complaints within the timeframes established for the appropriate Code Orders and categorize any gas leak by grade;(b) Notify OCE and OPC by e- mail and telephone of each Grade 1, Grade 2, and Grade 3 gas leaks;(c) Provide periodic updates to the initial notification; and(d) Submit written reports on the results of the leak detection and repair, and odor complaints. The leak detection, classification, and repair personnel shall meet the federal training requirements for natural gas operations, maintenance, and emergencies (49 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 192).3702.2 The Natural Gas Utility shall:
(a) Respond to (be at the site of) all Code 1 Orders within thirty (30) minutes after the Natural Gas Utility's dispatch has been informed about the leak and/or odor complaint during business or non-business hours, on a monthly average basis; with no more than three (3) percent of the overall monthly response times over fifty (50) minutes and no single event response time exceeding two (2) hours;(b) Respond to (be at the site of) all Code 2 Orders within sixty (60) minutes after the Natural Gas Utility's dispatch has been informed about the leak and/or odor complaint during business or non-business hours, on a monthly average basis; with no more than ten percent (10%) of the overall monthly response times over seventy- five (75) minutes and no single event response time exceeding four (4) hours;(c) Respond to all Code 3 Orders, by making a determination as to the severity of the gas leaks and/or reported odor complaints and indicate to the customer/caller when a representative will be at the site, provided that on a monthly average basis, a representative will be at the site not later than ninety (90) minutes after the Natural Gas Utility's dispatch has been informed about the leak and/or odor complaint during business and non-business hours; with no more than twenty percent (20%) of the overall monthly response times over ninety (90) minutes and no single event response time exceeding six (6) hours; and (d) Notify OCE and OPC within on the first business day after the end of each month, for those Code 1 response times that do not meet the requirements of these rules and that exceeded the fifty (50) minutes allowable response time and the single event maximum response time, and provide to OCE, on a monthly basis, the following additional information: (1) Full root cause analysis;(2) Location from which the technician was dispatched;(5) Length of time of the response;(6) Whether the Natural Gas Utility's standard processes for dispatch and response were followed and if not, a description of any deviation and the reason why;(7) Reason for any response in excess of the average allowable response time and in excess of two hours;(8) Number of in-progress Code Orders (any Code) at the time of dispatch in the District of Columbia;(9) Number of in-progress gas leaks (any Grade) at the time of dispatch in the District of Columbia;(10) Number of service technicians (qualified per Pipeline Hazardous Material Safety Administration OQ requirements to respond to Code 1 Orders) on-the-clock at the time of dispatch; and(11) Proposed remedy to prevent a similar circumstance, if any;(e) Categorize the gas leak by grade pursuant to Subsection 3702.4 if the Natural Gas Utility determines, upon responding to a Code 1, Code 2, or Code 3 Order, that a gas leak is in need of repair; and(f) Provide to OCMS and OPC on a quarterly basis the compliance reporting required by Subsection 3707.2. The Natural Gas Utility shall provide explanations if these time limits are exceeded, pursuant to Subsection 3708.3. 3702.3 The Natural Gas Utility shall report to OCE and OPC by telephone and e- mail all natural gas leaks, except gas leaks found inside residential and/or commercial customers' properties, at the earliest practicable time, but not later than one (1) hour after the Natural Gas Utility's dispatch has been informed about and determined that the gas odor complaint resulted from a leak and/or the dispatch has determined that a leak has occurred on the Natural Gas Utility's gas system, with as much detailed information as possible. To the extent all information required by Subsection 3702.5 is not available at the time of the initial communication, the Natural Gas Utility shall within two (2) hours of the dispatch supplement its initial report with the additional information. Gas odor complaints reported inside customers' facilities and odor complaints where no leaks are found shall not be reported. This reporting requirement applies to gas leaks that are found during business and non-business hours.
3702.4 Each gas leak shall be categorized as Grade 1, 2, or 3 as follows:
(a) Grade 1: A leak that presents an immediate or probable hazard to person(s) or property, and requires immediate repair or continuous action until the conditions are no longer hazardous;(b) Grade 2: A leak that is recognized as being non- hazardous at the time of detection, but requires scheduled repair based on probable future hazard; and(c) Grade 3: A leak that is non-hazardous at the time of detection and can be reasonably expected to remain non-hazardous.3702.5 Each telephone and e-mail report to OCE and OPC of Grade 1, Grade 2, and Grade 3 leak(s) due to a gas-related odor complaint shall state clearly, at a minimum, the following information:
(a) A description of the type of leak(s);(b) The dates when the leak began and ended;(c) The location of the leak(s), including street addresses and intersections, the ward(s) and/or quadrant(s);(d) Pipe size, material, pressure and type of gas pipeline involved.(e) The estimated number of customers and/or persons whose services were disrupted, if any;(f) A preliminary assessment as to the cause of the leak(s), if known.(g) The estimated time to repair the leak, if known; and(h) The Natural Gas Utility shall provide OCE and OPC with regular updates to the initial report as it receives more information.3702.6 All Grade 1 leaks shall be promptly repaired. If not repaired immediately, upon detection, because of downgrading of the Grade 1 leak to a Grade 2 leak, the Natural Gas Utility shall recheck the location within forty-eight (48) hours to determine if a Grade 1 leak returns. The location shall be continuously observed until completion of the repair or downgrade of the Grade 1 leak to a Grade 2 leak. If the Grade 1 leak returns, the leak must be repaired under current Grade 1 standards. The Natural Gas Utility shall submit a written report after one (1) week from the initial grading of the leak to OCE and OPC regarding the status of the downgraded leak and the Natural Gas Utility's progress in completing repairs and follow Sub sections 3702.11 and 3702.12 for Grade 2 and Grade 3 leaks, respectively until completion of the leak repair. Within eight (8) hours after a Grade 1 leak is downgraded to a Grade 2 leak, the Natural Gas Utility shall report by telephone and e- mail to OCE and OPC and shall state clearly the leak downgrading information, Subsection 3702.5 information and the name, telephone number, and identification of the technician downgrading the leak.
3702.7 Each written report to OCE and OPC concerning Grade 1 leaks shall state clearly, at a minimum, the following information as applicable to the incident:
(a) The street address, the ward(s) and/or quadrant(s) location of the leak or odor;(b) A description of the type of leak;(c) Pipe size, material, pressure, and type of the gas pipeline involved;(d) The time the Natural Gas Utility received the first call regarding a gas leak or leak detection;(e) The time the Natural Gas Utility's technician reached the site;(f) The cause of the leak, if known;(g) The time the area was made safe; and(h) The actual repair time; the time and date when the job was completed with actual repair duration.3702.8 Grade 2 leaks shall be monitored and reevaluated at least once every six months until cleared with no further signs of leak. Depending upon the location of the leak, reevaluation may be made earlier than six months. If reevaluation of a Grade 2 leak indicates a probable hazard, i.e., reclassified as a Grade 1 leak, it shall be repaired immediately. For Grade 2 leaks that are non-hazardous, the Natural Gas Utility shall schedule repairs within thirty (30) days. Otherwise, Grade 2 leaks shall be repaired within one calendar year, but no later than fifteen (15) months from the date the leak was first reported.
3702.9 Grade 3 leaks shall be monitored and reevaluated during the next scheduled leak survey, or within fifteen (15) months of the date reported, whichever occurs first, until the leak is repaired with no further signs of leak.
3702.10 Writ ten reports for leaks classified as Grade 2 and Grade 3 shall be filed semi-annually with OCE and OPC. The reports shall be submitted by July 31st and January 31st of each year.
3702.11 Each semi- annual written report concerning Grades 2 and 3 leaks shall state clearly, at a minimum, the following information as applicable:
(a) The street address, the ward(s) and/or quadrant(s) location of the leak or odor;(b) A description of the type and cause of leak;(c) Pipe size, material, pressure, and type of the gas pipeline involved; and(d) The schedule and the status of repair of all Grade 2 leaks consistent with the standard provided in Subsections 3702.10 or 3702.11.3702.12 The Natural Gas Utility shall create and maintain database(s) for all gas leaks and customer reported gas-related odor complaints. The database(s) shall be referred to as the Leak Identification, Detection and Repair, and Odor Complaints ("LIDAROC"). The database(s) shall contain, at a minimum:
(a) The origination date;(b) The work completion date;(c) The grade of the leak;(e) The location (address or intersection including the ward and/or quadrant where the leak occurred);(g) The Number of customers whose services were disrupted because of the leak, if any;(h) The cause of the leak;(i) The response time in minutes;(l) The work request Order number;(m) The work request type code;(o) The actual repair time in days; and(p) The actual repair time in minutes.3702.13 The Natural Gas Utility shall incorporate all natural gas leaks and customer reported odor complaint calls into the database(s) within five (5) days of receipt of the gas-related odor complaint and/or determination that a leak has occurred on its gas system.
3702.14 The Natural Gas Utility shall update the database(s) after it has repaired and/or resolved the leak and customer reported odor complaints and shall submit an electronic and a hard copy of the database(s) to the Commission and OPC on a quarterly basis.
D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 15, r. 15-3702
Notice of Final Rulemaking published at 56 DCR 7646 (September 25, 2009), incorporating text of Proposed Rulemaking published at 56 DCR 1827, 1835 (February 27, 2009); as amended by Final Rulemaking published at 56 DCR 9562 (December 25, 2009), incorporating text of Proposed Rulemaking published at 56 DCR 8599 (October 30, 2009); amended by Final Rulemaking published at 66 DCR 14960 (11/22/2019)Authority: D. C. Official Code § 2 -505 (2001 Ed.)