1.1 A bill for an act
1.2 relating to pipelines; providing for the disposition of abandoned pipelines; requiring
1.3 a pipeline abandonment plan; amending Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 216G.02,
1.4 by adding subdivisions; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes,
1.5 chapter 216G.
1.6BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
1.7 Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 216G.02, is amended by adding a subdivision
1.8to read:
1.9 Subd. 1a.Commissioner."Commissioner" means the commissioner of public safety.
1.10 EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective the day following final enactment.
1.11 Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 216G.02, is amended by adding a subdivision to
1.12read:
1.13 Subd. 3a.Pipeline abandonment."Pipeline abandonment" means to permanently cease
1.14service along a portion of or the entirety of a pipeline route in Minnesota.
1.15 EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective the day following final enactment.
1.16 Sec. 3. [216G.095] PIPELINE ABANDONMENT; RESPONSIBILITIES.
1.17 Subdivision 1.Notice.No later than 60 days before the date pipeline operations are
1.18scheduled to cease, a pipeline owner must provide each landowner whose land the pipeline
1.19traverses written notice of the pipeline owner's intent to cease pipeline operations. The
1.20notice must contain the language of this section and section 216G.13.
1Sec. 3.
25-01291 as introduced01/13/25 REVISOR RSI/CH
SENATE
STATE OF MINNESOTA
S.F. No. 733NINETY-FOURTH SESSION
(SENATE AUTHORS: KUNESH)
OFFICIAL STATUSD-PGDATE
Introduction and first reading01/27/2025
Referred to Energy, Utilities, Environment, and Climate 2.1 Subd. 2.Removal of abandoned pipeline.(a) Except as provided in subdivision 4, a
2.2pipeline owner whose easement interests have reverted to the landowner under section
2.3216G.09 or who has otherwise ceased operating the pipeline is responsible for removing:
2.4(1) any and all abandoned property from the landowner's property, including pipelines,
2.5pumping, metering, or compressor stations; and (2) all other infrastructure and ancillary
2.6equipment remaining on the landowner's property. The pipeline owner bears the financial
2.7responsibility for the removal and is liable for environmental cleanup and remediation costs
2.8required under chapter 115B.
2.9 (b) A landowner who wants an abandoned pipeline or other ancillary infrastructure and
2.10equipment removed from the landowner's land must submit a notarized written removal
2.11request to the pipeline owner. The removal request must stipulate the specific infrastructure
2.12and equipment that the landowner requests the pipeline owner remove. The landowner must
2.13submit a copy of the request to the Public Utilities Commission, the Pollution Control
2.14Agency, the Department of Natural Resources, the Board of Soil and Water Resources, and
2.15the appropriate county recorder and soil and water conservation district.
2.16 (c) Within 60 days of the date a pipeline owner receives a request to remove an abandoned
2.17pipeline under paragraph (b), the pipeline owner must purge the abandoned pipeline of all
2.18materials transported by the pipeline. The pipeline owner must certify the abandoned pipeline
2.19has been purged in a written notice sent to the landowner and the agencies listed in paragraph
2.20(b).
2.21 (d) A pipeline owner must begin removing an abandoned pipeline and other infrastructure
2.22the landowner requested the pipeline owner to remove within 30 days of the date the
2.23certification notice under paragraph (c) is sent. The pipeline owner must complete removal
2.24within 90 days of the date the certification notice is sent.
2.25 (e) A pipeline owner is liable for any releases or damages that result from removing an
2.26abandoned pipeline or other infrastructure and equipment.
2.27 Subd. 3.Land restoration.The pipeline owner is responsible for all reasonable costs
2.28associated with restoring the land on which an abandoned pipeline's operations were
2.29conducted. Restoring the land under this subdivision includes but is not limited to:
2.30 (1) restoring the land contour to control soil erosion, to minimize adverse effects on
2.31water quality, complement nearby terrain, and facilitate the prompt conversion of the land
2.32to the use desired by the landowner;
2.33 (2) replacing topsoil to a depth equal to or greater than the average depth of topsoil on
2.34land adjoining the landowner's land;
2Sec. 3.
25-01291 as introduced01/13/25 REVISOR RSI/CH 3.1 (3) establishing a permanent vegetative cover that is self-sustaining and regenerating,
3.2and that protects soil and water quality; and
3.3 (4) removing invasive plant species listed by the Department of Natural Resources, the
3.4Department of Agriculture, or the county weed inspector of the applicable county. Activities
3.5undertaken to control invasive plant species must be effective for five consecutive years,
3.6as determined from inspection by the county weed inspector, after which the pipeline owner's
3.7responsibility to control invasive plant species terminates.
3.8 Subd. 4.Abandoned pipeline left in place.(a) A landowner may relieve a pipeline
3.9owner of the requirement to remove an abandoned pipeline that is subject to section 216G.09
3.10or has otherwise been abandoned by submitting a notarized written request to the pipeline
3.11owner that the pipeline be left in place. The written request may also address the disposition
3.12of other abandoned property, including pumping, metering, or compressor stations, and
3.13other infrastructure and ancillary equipment remaining on the landowner's property. A
3.14landowner must submit a copy of the request to the Public Utilities Commission, the Pollution
3.15Control Agency, the Department of Natural Resources, the Board of Soil and Water
3.16Resources, and the appropriate county recorder and soil and water conservation district.
3.17 (b) A pipeline owner must comply with all federal regulations governing an abandoned
3.18pipeline, including the requirement to purge the abandoned pipeline of all materials
3.19transported by the pipeline. Within 90 days of the date a pipeline owner receives notice
3.20under paragraph (a), the pipeline owner must submit written certification of compliance
3.21with federal regulations regarding abandoned pipelines to the landowner and to the agencies
3.22listed in paragraph (a).
3.23 (c) A landowner who requests that a pipeline owner leave an abandoned pipeline left in
3.24place under this subdivision assumes all future liabilities associated with the abandoned
3.25pipeline and any other infrastructure left in place, including subsequent costs of abandoned
3.26pipeline and infrastructure removal, land restoration, and environmental remediation under
3.27chapter 115B, except that a pipeline owner is responsible for paying the costs of future
3.28monitoring and inspection of both the abandoned pipeline left in place and the abandoned
3.29pipeline's surrounding environment.
3.30 EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective the day following final enactment.
3.31 Sec. 4. [216G.13] ABANDONMENT PLAN.
3.32 Subdivision 1.Approval required.A pipeline must not be abandoned in Minnesota
3.33unless the commissioner approves a pipeline abandonment plan that meets the requirements
3Sec. 4.
25-01291 as introduced01/13/25 REVISOR RSI/CH 4.1of this section. When approving a pipeline abandonment plan, the commissioner may
4.2establish conditions that apply to the abandonment process and to the abandoned pipeline
4.3for the duration of the time that the abandoned pipeline remains in the ground.
4.4 Subd. 2.Consultation; public hearing required.When developing a pipeline
4.5abandonment plan, a pipeline owner must contact and consult with interested stakeholders,
4.6including but not limited to: (1) owners of land or Tribal governments having jurisdiction
4.7through treaty rights for land on which the abandoned pipeline is located; (2) state and local
4.8government agencies responsible for land development and maintaining the quality of water
4.9bodies near the pipeline; and (3) environmental organizations. The pipeline owner must
4.10hold at least one public hearing, as determined by the commissioner, to allow stakeholders
4.11and members of the public to provide input on the abandonment plan.
4.12 Subd. 3.Plan content.A pipeline abandonment plan must contain the following
4.13information:
4.14 (1) a general description of the pipeline and the pipeline's ancillary facilities, including
4.15a history of the pipeline's operation and the products the pipeline has carried;
4.16 (2) a schedule of the proposed abandonment process;
4.17 (3) a map showing the location of the pipeline; right-of-way; pumping stations, storage
4.18areas, and other ancillary facilities; water bodies along and near the pipeline route; road,
4.19rail, and utility crossings; and environmentally sensitive resources on or near the pipeline
4.20route;
4.21 (4) a detailed description of the facilities to be abandoned, including:
4.22 (i) the pipeline's composition, diameter, thickness, and coatings;
4.23 (ii) ancillary pipeline facilities; and
4.24 (iii) other facilities on nearby land owned by the pipeline owner;
4.25 (5) a detailed description of the land adjacent to the pipeline, including:
4.26 (i) land uses;
4.27 (ii) natural features, including water bodies, wetlands, karst areas, rare vegetation, and
4.28animal species; and
4.29 (iii) the identity of landowners and land administration agencies, and the land parcels
4.30each owns or administers;
4.31 (6) a history of pipeline ruptures, leaks, and repairs;
4Sec. 4.
25-01291 as introduced01/13/25 REVISOR RSI/CH 5.1 (7) facilities to be left in place, including:
5.2 (i) locations;
5.3 (ii) reasons for leaving the facilities in place;
5.4 (iii) mitigation measures that the pipeline owner must take in order to reduce
5.5environmental and safety risks, including cleaning and plugging pipe, segmenting pipe, and
5.6efforts to prevent water movement; and
5.7 (iv) an estimate of risks from soil subsidence, pipe collapse, pipe corrosion, soil erosion,
5.8and contamination removal;
5.9 (8) facilities to be removed, including:
5.10 (i) facility locations;
5.11 (ii) reasons for removal;
5.12 (iii) cleaning and removal procedures; and
5.13 (iv) pipeline recycling and reuse plans;
5.14 (9) land reclamation activities;
5.15 (10) performance measures that evaluate the abandonment process, including but not
5.16limited to:
5.17 (i) removing soil and water contamination;
5.18 (ii) protecting sensitive environmental areas;
5.19 (iii) protecting utility and transportation crossings; and
5.20 (iv) managing the long-term effects of the abandoned pipeline on the land;
5.21 (11) a statement of responsibility for facilities left in place;
5.22 (12) a postabandonment monitoring and maintenance schedule;
5.23 (13) abandonment costs and the adequacy of the pipeline's financial assurance funds to
5.24pay for both initial and ongoing costs; and
5.25 (14) any additional information required by the commissioner.
5.26 EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective the day following final enactment.
5Sec. 4.
25-01291 as introduced01/13/25 REVISOR RSI/CH