This practice is intended to assist engineers, LDC's and installers in determining the suitability of gas pipelines for a secondary use as carriers for optical fiber systems. It must be kept in mind that the primary use of the gas pipelines is to deliver natural gas to the end customer. Any secondary use of the system shall have minimal impact on its primary function. It is up to the engineer to decide upon the order of operations and any exceptions that may be involved in the selection process.

Before the selection procedure begins, the LDC must have developed an explicit agreement authorizing an installer to place optical fiber cables within their piping system.

The relevant LDC engineers should also be cognizant of how the installation of optical fiber cable will impact the future gas deliverability, operation, maintenance, and rehabilitation needs of the pipelines to be used as carriers of optical fiber systems.