PHMSA Issues Proposed Rule Seeking To Impose Enhanced Safety And Operational Requirements On Carbon Dioxide Pipelines

On January 10, 2025, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration ("PHMSA") issued a proposed rule setting forth revisions to the federal Pipeline Safety Regulations ("PSR") (49 C.F.R. Parts 190-99) to include safety standards and reporting requirements for all phases of carbon dioxide pipelines. PHMSA states that the revisions are in response to multiple events, including congressional mandates directing PHMSA to regulate both carbon dioxide in gas as well as (sub-critical) liquid phases, anticipated expansions of pipeline infrastructure transporting carbon dioxide in all phases based on initiatives to address climate change (e.g., in conjunction with carbon capture, sequestration, and storage activities), and lessons learned from the February 22, 2020, rupture of a supercritical-phase carbon dioxide pipeline near Satartia, Mississippi.