Safety Measures

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To ensure that customers use city gas with complete peace of mind, city gas utilities have put in place a comprehensive, 24-hour safety system that monitors all parts of the supply chain, from the city gas plant to the home.

The utilities have set a "safety improvement target" that calls for deaths from gas-related accidents to be reduced to near zero by the year 2010. To prevent accidents at the userﾕs end, the utilities are installing safety system such as intelligent gas meters.

Gas utilities are also taking active anti-earthquake measures by introducing earthquake-proof gas facilities and gas shut-off systems.

To increase safety in using city gas
･ Gas equipment safety system

･ Gas equipment safety system

･ Facility Measures

City gas utilities are promoting the active installation of earthquake-proof polyethylene (PE) pipelines that survived such devastating disasters as the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake of 1995.

The total length of PE pipelines has increased approximately 2.8 times over the past decade. These pipelines suffered no damage even in the Niigata Chuetsu Earthquake in 2004 and the Niigata Chuetsu Offshore Earthquake in 2007, and have been appreciated once again as being highly resistant to earthquakes.

Gas utilities are also working to promote intelligent gas meters which shut off gas supply automatically as soon as they sense an earthquake registering approximately a strong 5 on the Japanese intensity scale of 7.

･ Total Nationwide Length of Low-pressure Main and Branch PE Gas Pipelines

･ Emergency Measures

In order to prevent secondary disasters when a huge earthquake occurs, gas supplies can be stopped depending on the situation in each of the blocks which comprise the supply area. An intelligent gas meter which is installed in each house shuts off the gas supply automatically.

Seismographs have been installed in every block and are used as benchmarks for shutting off gas supplies.


	The followings are methods for shutting off gas supplies on an integration block or unit block basis, based on the magnitude or situation. - stopping gas delivery at supply facilities such as gas plants and gas holders - shutting off valves installed in medium-pressure pipelines - shutting down the pressure regulators within the target block

･ Recovery Measures

A system* is in place in which customers are provided with assistance through the unified efforts of the gas industry when gas supplies have to be cut off in the event of a large-scale disaster.

* Overview of The Japan Gas Associationﾕs Relief System in
the Event of Earthquakes or Other Emergencies

･ Dispatch of an Advance Team
The Japan Gas Association will organize an advance team of relief workers consisting of members from the administrative gas utilities belonging to the relevant local subcommittee, nearby gas utilities, major gas utilities and the Japan Gas Association, and dispatch the team to the affected area should any afflicted gas utilities shut off its gas supply.
･ Relief System
If any afflicted utilities makes a relief request to the chairperson of the relevant local subcommittee, the chairperson will determine a relief system by taking into consideration opinions and the like offered by the advance team with regard to relief systems and consulting with the Japan Gas Association.
･ Burden of Relief Expenses
If relief activities are implemented, the gas utilities which receives the relief will bear the personnel costs of its employees (including any extra remuneration), among the expenses incurred by the utilities, and the afflicted gas utilities will bear the rest of the expenses (including accommodation costs, materials costs, and the personnel costs of gas fitting companies).
･ Payment of Relief Funds
Gas utilities have collaboratively established the Japan Gas Association Disaster Relief Fund after the Kushiro-Oki Earthquake (1993) in order to relieve the burden of afflicted gas utilities and decided to pay relief funds according to given rules.