Division of Fire Prevention joins Joint Pipeline Office

Petroleum News Alaska Staff

The Joint Pipeline Office said April 7 that it has signed an agreement with the Alaska Department of Public Safety Division of Fire Prevention to provide assistance to in oversight of the trans-Alaska pipeline system.

“We are very pleased to welcome DFP to the JPO system,” said Bill Britt, state pipeline coordinator. Britt said staff from the JPO and the Division of Fire Prevention would begin visiting pump stations in early April “to conduct inspections of TAPS facilities to ensure compliance with state fire regulations and the state right-of-way lease. DFP will also consult with JPO staff on fire prevention and response issues and fire code interpretations provided to Alyeska Pipeline Service Co.”

Gary Powell, state fire marshal said: “The DFP is looking forward to involvement in the safe operation of the state’s major resource. We believe this will be an enhancement to JPO’s oversight of the TAPS.”

The JPO, a consortium of six state and five federal agencies, was created in 1990 and stemmed from a cooperative effort by the federal Bureau of Land Management and the Alaska Department of Natural Resources.