# COLONIAL PIPELINE CO — Notice of Amendment

**Citation:** CPF 120105002M  
**Type / status:** enforcement / historical  
**Agency:** Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration  
**Effective:** Not stated  
**Published:** 2010-02-16

CLOSED notice of amendment citing 195.401(b), 195.402(c)(9), 195.408(a).

## Document text

Notice of Amendment involving COLONIAL PIPELINE CO. PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulations as 195.401(b),  195.402(c)(9),  195.408(a). The case was opened on 2010-02-16 and is reported as closed as of 2011-06-13. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.

Official case documents:

120105002M_NOA_02162010.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/120105002M/120105002M_NOA_02162010.pdf

120105002M_NOA_02162010_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/120105002M/120105002M_NOA_02162010_text.pdf

120105002M_Operator Response to NOA_03172010.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/120105002M/120105002M_Operator%20Response%20to%20NOA_03172010.pdf

120105002M_Order Directing Amendment_06132011.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/120105002M/120105002M_Order%20Directing%20Amendment_06132011.pdf

120105002M_Order Directing Amendment_06132011_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/120105002M/120105002M_Order%20Directing%20Amendment_06132011_text.pdf

120105002M_Order Directing Amendment_06132011_text.pdf

Mr. Tim Felt
President and Chief Executive Officer
Colonial Pipeline Company
1185 Sanctuary Parkway, Suite 100
Alpharetta, GA 30009-4738
Re: CPF No. 1-2010-5002M
Dear Mr. Felt:
Enclosed please find the Order Directing Amendment issued in the above-referenced case. It
withdraws one allegation and finds that the other inadequate procedures cited in the Notice of
Amendment have been satisfactorily amended. Therefore, this case is now closed. Service of
the Order by certified mail is deemed effective upon the date of mailing, or as otherwise
provided under 49 C.F.R. § 190.5.
Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.
Sincerely,
Jeffrey D. Wiese
Associate Administrator
for Pipeline Safety
Enclosure
cc: Mr. Alan Mayberry, Deputy Associate Administrator for Field Operations, Pipeline Safety
Mr. Byron Coy, P.E., Director, Eastern Region, PHMSA
Mr. Doug Belden, Vice President and General Manager-Operations, Colonial Pipeline
Company
CERTIFIED MAIL - RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED [7005 1160 0001 0075 9435]



U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
PIPELINE AND HAZARDOUS MATERIALS SAFETY ADMINISTRATION
OFFICE OF PIPELINE SAFETY
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20590
____________________________________
In the Matter of )
Colonial Pipeline Company, ) CPF No. 1-2010-5002M
)
)
)
Respondent. )
____________________________________)
ORDER DIRECTING AMENDMENT
On October 17, 2006, pursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 60117, a representative of the Virginia State
Corporation Commission, as agent for the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety
Administration (PHMSA), Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS), conducted an on-site pipeline safety
inspection of the facilities and records of Colonial Pipeline Company (Colonial or Respondent)
in Chesapeake, Virginia. Colonial is the operator of a 5,519-mile pipeline system, which
delivers petroleum products from refineries in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama to
terminals in the South and Eastern United States.
The investigation arose out of an incident that occurred at the Chesapeake Terminal on October
16 and 17, 2006, when Tank #9 overflowed while receiving petroleum products from the
Colonial pipeline. At the time of the incident, a high-level alarm failed to communicate the
unsafe condition to the Colonial Operation and Control Center (OCC) in Atlanta, Georgia.
As a result of the inspection, the Director, Eastern Region, OPS (Director), issued to Respondent,
by letter dated February 16, 2010, a Notice of Amendment. In accordance with 49 C.F.R.
§ 190.237, the Notice proposed finding that certain of Respondent’s written operations and
maintenance procedures were inadequate and proposed that Respondent amend its procedures.
Specifically, the Notice alleged inadequacies in: (1) Respondent’s procedures for correcting an
unsafe condition as required by § 195.401(b); (2) Respondent’s procedures for monitoring
unattended facilities not equipped to fail safe as required by § 195.402(c)(9); and (3)
Respondent’s procedures for communications between the control center and the local tank
facility as required by § 195.408.
Colonial responded to the Notice by letters dated March 17, 2010, and April 12, 2010
(Response). Respondent contested two of the procedural inadequacies, presented information in
response to the other inadequacies, and requested a hearing. Following discussions with
Respondent, the Director agreed to modify the allegation that Colonial’s procedures for
correcting an unsafe condition failed to comply with § 195.401(b) to clarify that it extended only



2
to Respondent’s pipeline facilities and not the tank (which was not operated by Colonial). Such
allegation is hereby modified. The Director also agreed to withdraw the allegation that
Respondent’s procedures for monitoring unattended facilities not equipped to fail safe required
under § 195.402(c)(9) were inadequate. Such allegation is hereby withdrawn. Based on the
Director’s actions, by letter dated August 3, 2010, Colonial withdrew its request for a hearing,
thereby authorizing the entry of this Order without further notice.
In its Response, Colonial explained that following the incident it amended its procedures for
delivery of product and communications procedures to comply with §§ 195.401(b) and 195.408
and submitted copies of its amended procedures which the Director has reviewed and determined
to be satisfactory. Accordingly, based on the results of such review, I find that Respondent’s
original procedures for correcting an unsafe condition and Respondent’s communications
procedures as described in the Notice were inadequate to ensure safe operation of its pipeline
system, but that Respondent has corrected the identified inadequacies. As stated above, PHMSA
has withdrawn the allegation that Respondent’s procedures for monitoring unattended facilities
not equipped to fail safe were inadequate with respect to § 195.402(c)(9). Therefore, no need
exists to order Colonial to amend its procedures.
___________________________________ __________________________
Jeffrey D. Wiese Date Issued
Associate Administrator
for Pipeline Safety

## Provenance

- Official: Yes
- Source: <https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/120105002M>
- Source ID: `phmsa-enforcement`
- SHA-256: `16f59b0d4dfa9ddca28a59d309b81ebf2e68778d865ea62e9370ac60aa7157e7`
- Retrieved: 2026-08-20T04:44:44.458Z
- Exported: 2026-08-22T01:40:33.157Z
- Document slug: `phmsa-enforcement-120105002m`

### Source metadata

```json
{
  "cpf": "120105002M",
  "operator": "COLONIAL PIPELINE CO",
  "region": "Eastern",
  "pipelineType": "INTERSTATE LIQUID ONSHORE",
  "caseStatus": "CLOSED",
  "citedSections": [
    "195.401(b)",
    "195.402(c)(9)",
    "195.408(a)"
  ],
  "dataAsOf": "08/04/2026 12PM",
  "caseDataAsOf": "2026-08-04",
  "attachmentCount": 5,
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      "bytes": 38191,
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      "bytes": 15866,
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  ],
  "extractedAgencyDocumentCount": 1,
  "attachmentPolicy": "Official attachment links are retained. Agency-issued documents may also include a verified local PDF and page-level text representation.",
  "jurisdiction": "US",
  "operatorName": "COLONIAL PIPELINE CO"
}
```
