The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) recently awarded $14.8 million in grants funding, authorized by the bipartisan Protecting Our Infrastructure of Pipelines and Enhancing Safety Act of 2020.
“To ensure the safety of the world’s largest pipeline system—we need every level of government and the non-profit sector working to mitigate risk,” PHMSA Deputy Administrator Tristan Brown said. “These grants will provide states, non-profits, first responders and academic institutions with the resources necessary to better protect the public.”
Funding was awarded through five programs:
Pipeline Emergency Response Grants distributed $5.8 million for incident response activities related to the transportation of gas or hazardous liquids by pipelines.
The Competitive Academic Agreement Program distributed $4.3 million of (CAAP) funding to six universities to improve the safety of carbon dioxide, hydrogen, and older, higher risk pipelines.
Technical Assistance Grants distributed $2 million to local communities and groups for technical assistance related to pipeline safety.
State Damage Prevention Program Grants distributed $1.5 million for states to establish or improve state programs designed to prevent damage to underground pipelines.
One-Call Grants distributed $1.1 million to provide funding to state agencies in promoting damage prevention.
Earlier this year, PHMSA awarded $64.4 million to support state-pipeline and underground natural gas storage safety operations.