Pipeline Public Engagement

On March 28, 2024, API published this recommended practice, providing guidelines and best practices for pipeline companies to build upon existing programs or establish and implement new stakeholder engagement processes to make sure all stakeholders can engage in meaningful dialogue throughout a pipeline life cycle.  The need for a recommended practice was identified earlier by the Pipeline Safety Trust through a series of workshops and supported by a PHMSA Community Technical Assistance Grant.

This site is intended to guide pipeline operators in their Pipeline Public Engagement Program for the asset’s life cycle. If you’re visiting the site and do not work for a pipeline operator, you may find it beneficial to learn pipeline public engagement and the framework for pipeline operators to review an existing engagement program or develop and implement a new one. The Resource Center may be of particular interest to everyone as it has numerous resources and tools like Find Your Operator.

Coming together

Tribal Nations “Honest dialogue should occur before a project is initiated, not after, helping to prevent safety and cultural issues from arising.”

Travis Hallam, Three Affiliated Tribes Pipeline Authority

 

Public “The public members who helped draft this RP were grateful for the way the industry and government stakeholders involved and embraced the balanced makeup of the group. We are very happy with the language and emphasis of the document, and will help however we can to ensure that implementation lives up to the agreed upon and important core principles and basic engagement elements.”

Carl Weimer, Pipeline Safety Trust Special Advisor

 

Government “PHMSA applauds the publication of RP 1185 and the collaborative efforts of pipeline safety advocates, operators, subject matter experts, and other stakeholders. This guidance helps operators understand the benefits of utilizing a variety of public engagement tactics to conduct, plan, and participate in public forums to explain safety efforts and risks, and to also listen to and consider the public’s concerns in pipeline safety decisions.”

Alan Mayberry, Associate Administrator for Pipeline Safety at the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

 

Industry “Our industry is proud to work with community members and regulators to continue building mutual trust and strengthening engagement between pipeline operators and the communities where we are privileged to work. RP 1185 acknowledges the diversity of both the pipeline industry and the communities in which we operate, providing a flexible, scalable framework to incorporate proactive community engagement into our pipeline safety culture.”

Shawn Lyon, Senior Vice President of Logistics and Storage at MPLX GP LLC.