§ 1.10 Abandonment of Gas Services

A.Abandonment of Service Lines That Become Inactive after the Effective Date of these Regulations:#

1.All non-plastic and non-cathodically-protected steel inactive service lines and service stubs shall be abandoned within five (5) years, unless such lines have been reactivated prior to that time.#

2.All plastic and cathodically-protected steel inactive service lines shall be physically disconnected (cut off) within close proximity of a property line within five (5) years.#

3.The LDC should determine whether inactive service lines ought to be abandoned at any prior time. The determination shall be based on such appropriate variables as service line age, location, condition, material, construction methods, leak and maintenance history of the pipe, existence and/or application of cathodic protection, individual and property-owner requests and other criteria selected by the LDC.#

B.Abandonment of any Inactive Service Line#

1.Notwithstanding the above, inactive service lines, which shall be abandoned promptly, are those:#

a.located in, or in close proximity to, excavations; or#

b.located in, or in close proximity to, buildings being demolished; or#

c.discovered to be leaking gas; or#

d.unrecorded or previously unknown lines discovered in the course of leakage surveys, construction, maintenance or inspection of facilities.#

C.Records, Reports and Procedures#

1.Readily accessible records of inactive service lines and service stubs shall be maintained by the LDC which shall include the type of pipe material, the service line's location, the date the service line became inactive, and the date the service line was installed. If any information is unavailable to or unobtainable by the LDC, it shall be listed on the record as "unknown".#