Mains replacement – Do all gas conveyors need approved iron mains replacement programmes?
Under the Pipelines Safety Regulation [PSR] 1996, regulation 13, gas conveyors are required to maintain their networks in a safe condition. In respect of iron gas mains, there is currently no feasible alternative to maintaining the network other than to decommission it and replace it with a more suitable material, usually polyethylene. This is the basis of HSE’s enforcement policy, which requires iron gas mains within 30m of property to be decommissioned and replaced at the latest by March 2032. In support of that policy PSR was amended in 2003 to allow HSE to approve a programme submitted by a pipeline operator for the decommissioning of iron pipes. This includes cast and ductile iron pipes but not steel or pipes made from other materials. The intention of PSR regulation 13A was to give legal underpinning to HSE’s Enforcement Policy and was principally aimed at major distribution networks which, because of their size, have practicable constraints on how much main can be replaced each
