# INTERSTATE STORAGE & PIPELINE C0 — Warning Letter

**Citation:** CPF 120135009W  
**Type / status:** enforcement / historical  
**Agency:** Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration  
**Effective:** Not stated  
**Published:** 2013-07-12

CLOSED warning letter citing 195.440(a), 195.440(b), 195.440(c).

## Document text

Warning Letter involving INTERSTATE STORAGE & PIPELINE C0. PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulations as 195.440(a),  195.440(b),  195.440(c). The case was opened on 2013-07-12 and is reported as closed as of 2013-07-12. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.

Official case documents:

120135009W_Warning Letter_07122013.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/120135009W/120135009W_Warning%20Letter_07122013.pdf

120135009W_Warning Letter_07122013_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/120135009W/120135009W_Warning%20Letter_07122013_text.pdf

120135009W_Warning Letter_07122013_text.pdf

U.S. Department Of Transportation Pipeline and 609.989.2171
Hazardous Materials
Safety Administration
820 Bear Tavern Road, Suite 103
West Trenton, NJ 08628
WARNING LETTER
OVERNIGHT EXPRESS MAIL
July 12, 2013
Charles Denault, President
Interstate Storage and Pipeline Corporation
400 Amherst Street, Suite 405
Nashua, NH 03063
CPF 1-2013-5009W
Dear Mr. Denault:
From December 12 to 13, 2011, a representative of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety
Administration (PHMSA), Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS), pursuant to Chapter 601 of 49 United States
Code inspected Interstate Storage & Pipeline Corporation’s (ISPC) Public Awareness Program, Public
Awareness Program for Interstate Storage & Pipeline Corp., Revised November 30, 2009 (Public Awareness
for ISPC), and materials in Bordentown, New Jersey.
As a result of the inspection, it appears that you have committed probable violations of the Pipeline Safety
Regulations, Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations. The items inspected and the probable violations are:
1. §195.440 Public awareness.
(a) Each pipeline operator must develop and implement a written continuing public education
program that follows the guidance provided in the American Petroleum Institute's (API)
Recommended Practice (RP) 1162 (incorporated by reference, see § 195.3).
ISPC failed to develop a written continuing public education program that followed the guidance provided in
API RP 1162 Section 4 Message Content. Specifically, ISPC did not have a documented process for
providing programs in both English and in other languages commonly used by significant concentration of
non-English speaking population along the pipeline.
Pursuant to API RP 1162 Section 4, “communications materials should be provided in language(s) spoken by
a significant portion of the intended audience.” The Public Awareness Program for ISPC had no information
on what data will be evaluated to make the determination whether or not the program should be provided in
both English and other languages, the frequency of evaluation, and defining what the operator deems
“significant number and concentration.”



1-2013-5009W
2. §195.440 Public awareness.
(a) Each pipeline operator must develop and implement a written continuing public education
program that follows the guidance provided in the American Petroleum Institute's (API)
Recommended Practice (RP) 1162 (incorporated by reference, see § 195.3).
ISPC failed to develop a written continuing public education program that followed the guidance provided in
API RP 1162 Section 4.1 Pipeline Purpose and Reliability.
Pursuant to API RP 1162 Section 4.1, “[o]perators should consider providing a general explanation of the
purpose of the pipeline and/or facilities and the reliability of pipelines meet the energy needs of the region. . .
.” The Public Awareness Program for ISPC (including materials that were sent to stakeholders) did not
contain a general explanation of the purpose of its pipeline and/or facilities and the reliability of its pipelines
to meet the energy needs of the region it is in.
3. §195.440 Public awareness.
(a) Each pipeline operator must develop and implement a written continuing public education
program that follows the guidance provided in the American Petroleum Institute's (API)
Recommended Practice (RP) 1162 (incorporated by reference, see § 195.3).
ISPC failed to develop a written continuing public education program that followed the guidance provided in
API RP 1162 Section 4.2 Hazard Awareness and Prevention Measures.
Pursuant to API RP 1162 Section 4.2,
“[o]perators should provide a very broad overview of potential
hazards, their potential consequences and the measures undertaken by the operator to prevent or mitigate the
risks from pipelines. . . .” The Public Awareness Program for ISPC (including materials that were sent to the
affected public and excavators stakeholders) did not contain potential hazards, its potential consequences and
the measures undertaken by the operator to prevent or mitigate the risks from pipelines information.
4. §195.440 Public awareness.
(a) Each pipeline operator must develop and implement a written continuing public education
program that follows the guidance provided in the American Petroleum Institute's (API)
Recommended Practice (RP) 1162 (incorporated by reference, see § 195.3).
ISPC failed to develop a written continuing public education program that followed the guidance provided in
API RP 1162 Section 4.3.4 Liaison with Emergency Officials.
Pursuant to API RP 1162 Section 4.3.4, the message content should have “information that describe[s] the
ongoing relationship between the operator and local emergency response officials to help prevent incidents
and assure preparedness for emergencies.” The Public Awareness Program for ISPC (including material
sent to the affected public and excavators stakeholders) did not describe an ongoing relationship between the
operator and local emergency response officials.
5. §195.440 Public awareness.
(a) Each pipeline operator must develop and implement a written continuing public education
program that follows the guidance provided in the American Petroleum Institute's (API)
Recommended Practice (RP) 1162 (incorporated by reference, see § 195.3).
ISPC failed to develop a written continuing public education program that followed the guidance provided in
API RP 1162 Section 4.9 Right-of-Way (ROW) Encroachment Prevention.
Pursuant to API RP 1162 Section 4.9, “[p]ipeline operators should communicate that encroachments upon
the pipeline ROW inhibit the operator’s ability to respond to pipeline emergencies, eliminate third-party
damage, provide ROW surveillance, perform routine maintenance, and perform required federal/state
inspections. . .” The Public Awareness Program for ISPC (including materials that were sent to
stakeholders) did not communicate information regarding ROW encroachment.
120135009W_Warning Letter_07122013 Page 2 of 5



1-2013-5009W
6. §195.440 Public awareness.
(a) Each pipeline operator must develop and implement a written continuing public education
program that follows the guidance provided in the American Petroleum Institute's (API)
Recommended Practice (RP) 1162 (incorporated by reference, see § 195.3).
ISPC failed to develop a written continuing public education program that followed the guidance provided in
API RP 1162 Section 4.10 Pipeline Maintenance Construction Activities.
Pursuant to API RP 1162 Section 4.10, “[p]ipeline maintenance-related construction activities should be
communicated to the audience affected by the specific activity in a timely manner appropriate to the nature
and extent of the activity.” The Public Awareness Program for ISPC did not contain procedures for
communicating any pipeline construction activities to any stakeholders.
7. §195.440 Public awareness.
(a) Each pipeline operator must develop and implement a written continuing public education
program that follows the guidance provided in the American Petroleum Institute's (API)
Recommended Practice (RP) 1162 (incorporated by reference, see § 195.3).
ISPC failed to develop a written continuing public education program that followed the guidance provided in
API RP 1162 Section 4.11 Security.
Pursuant to API RP Section 4.11, “[w]here applicable and in accordance with the national Homeland
Security efforts, pipeline operators should communicate an overview pertaining to security of their pipelines
and related facilities.” The Public Awareness Program for ISPC (including materials that were sent to
stakeholders) did not contain information pertaining to security of its pipelines and related facilities.
8. §195.440 Public awareness.
(a) Each pipeline operator must develop and implement a written continuing public education
program that follows the guidance provided in the American Petroleum Institute's (API)
Recommended Practice (RP) 1162 (incorporated by reference, see § 195.3).
ISPC failed to develop a written continuing public education program that followed the guidance provided in
API RP 1162 Sections 7.2 Program Recordkeeping.
Pursuant to API RP 1162 Section 7.2 (c), an operator must keep records of all program evaluations, including
current results, follow-up actions and expected results. The Public Awareness Program for ISPC did not
address this requirement.
9. §195.440 Public awareness.
(a) Each pipeline operator must develop and implement a written continuing public education
program that follows the guidance provided in the American Petroleum Institute's (API)
Recommended Practice (RP) 1162 (incorporated by reference, see § 195.3).
ISPC failed to develop a written continuing public education program that followed the guidance provided in
API RP 1162 Sections 8.4 Measuring Program Effectiveness.
API RP 1162 Section 8.4 identifies four measures that an operator should evaluate for effectiveness for the
four intended stakeholder audience (affected public, emergency responders, public officials, and excavators).
According to the Public Awareness Program for ISPC, “[a] survey has been designed to evaluate the
effectiveness of the Program message delivery materials and methods for the affected public stakeholder
audience.” (emphasis added) ISPC did not have procedures for evaluating the effectiveness of its program for
the other three stakeholder audience (emergency responders, public officials, and excavators).
120135009W_Warning Letter_07122013 Page 3 of 5



1-2013-5009W
10. §195.440 Public awareness.
(a) Each pipeline operator must develop and implement a written continuing public education
program that follows the guidance provided in the American Petroleum Institute's (API)
Recommended Practice (RP) 1162 (incorporated by reference, see § 195.3).
ISPC failed to implement Section 11.3.1 Evaluation of Survey Responses for Affected Public Stakeholder of
its written continuing public education program.
Section 11.3.1 Evaluation of Survey Responses for Affected Public Stakeholder describes a scoring system
and evaluation process for the answers/responses from the affected public survey. However, ISPC could not
produce any records that demonstrated that it scored and evaluated the answer/responses from the affected
public survey in accordance with its procedure.
11. §195.440 Public awareness.
(a) . . .
(b) The operator's program must follow the general program recommendations of API RP
1162 and assess the unique attributes and characteristics of the operator's pipeline and
facilities.
ISPC’s Public Awareness Program for ISPC failed to follow API RP 1162 Section 4.6.1 Transmission
Pipeline Markers and assess the unique attributes and characteristic of the operator’s pipeline and facilities.
API RP 1162 Section 4.6.1 states that “[t]he operator’s awareness communications should include
information about what pipeline markers look like. . . .” API RP 1162 Section 4.6.1 refers to Appendix C for
additional details. In Appendix C of API RP 1162, under C.6.1 Transmission Pipeline Markers, it states that
the “[p]ublic awareness materials should include illustrations and descriptions of pipeline markers used by
the operator and the information that the markers contain.” (emphasis added) The Public Awareness
Program for ISPC (including materials that were provided to stakeholders) illustrated generic pipeline
markers, which was not a representation of ISPC’s pipeline markers.
12. §195.440 Public awareness.
(a) . . .
(c) The operator must follow the general program recommendations, including baseline and
supplemental requirements of API RP 1162, unless the operator provides justification in its
program or procedural manual as to why compliance with all or certain provisions of the
recommended practice is not practicable and not necessary for safety.
ISPC failed to follow the general program recommendation of Section 7.3 Record Retention. Specifically,
ISPC did not retain records of stakeholder audiences with whom it has communicated and its program
evaluation for a minimum of five (5) years.
Pursuant to API RP 1162 Section 7.3, records of stakeholder audiences with whom it has communicated and
program evaluation should be retained for a minimum of five (5) years. However, at the time of this
inspection, ISPC was unable produce those records prior to 2009.
13. §195.440 Public awareness.
(a) . . .
(c) The operator must follow the general program recommendations, including baseline and
supplemental requirements of API RP 1162, unless the operator provides justification in its
program or procedural manual as to why compliance with all or certain provisions of the
recommended practice is not practicable and not necessary for safety.
120135009W_Warning Letter_07122013 Page 4 of 5



1-2013-5009W
ISPC failed to follow the general program recommendation, including baseline and supplemental
requirement of API RP 1162 Section 8.4 Measuring Program Effectiveness because it did not conduct an
effectiveness evaluation for the emergency responders, public officials, and excavators.
API RP 1162 Section 8.4 identifies four measures that an operator should evaluate for effectiveness for the
four intended stakeholder audience (affected public, emergency responders, public officials, and excavators).
At the time of this inspection, ISPC was unable to produce any documentation or evidence to show that it
conducted an effectiveness evaluation for the emergency responders, public officials, and excavators.
Under 49 United States Code, § 60122, you are subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $200,000 per
violation per day the violation persists up to a maximum of $2,000,000 for a related series of violations. For
violations occurring prior to January 4, 2012, the maximum penalty may not exceed $100,000 per violation
per day, with a maximum penalty not to exceed $1,000,000 for a related series of violations. We have
reviewed the circumstances and supporting documents involved in this case, and have decided not to conduct
additional enforcement action or penalty assessment proceedings at this time. We advise you to correct the
items identified in this letter. Failure to do so will result in ISPC being subject to additional enforcement
action.
No reply to this letter is required. If you choose to reply, please address your correspondence to: Byron Coy,
PE, Director, PHMSA Eastern Region, 820 Bear Tavern Road, Suite 103, W. Trenton, NJ 08628 and please
refer to CPF 1-2013-5009W. Be advised that all material you submit in response to this enforcement action
is subject to being made publicly available. If you believe that any portion of your responsive material
qualifies for confidential treatment under 5 U.S.C. 552(b), along with the complete original document you
must provide a second copy of the document with the portions you believe qualify for confidential treatment
redacted and an explanation of why you believe the redacted information qualifies for confidential treatment
under 5 U.S.C. 552(b).
Sincerely,
Byron E. Coy, PE
Director, Eastern Region
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration
120135009W_Warning Letter_07122013 Page 5 of 5

## Provenance

- Official: Yes
- Source: <https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/120135009W>
- Source ID: `phmsa-enforcement`
- SHA-256: `1630d088f100b3c8915c4fb18dee1acb5525875c37bddb371eaaa1eeaeb575fc`
- Retrieved: 2026-08-20T04:44:44.458Z
- Exported: 2026-08-22T23:31:52.706Z
- Document slug: `phmsa-enforcement-120135009w`

### Source metadata

```json
{
  "cpf": "120135009W",
  "operator": "INTERSTATE STORAGE & PIPELINE C0",
  "region": "Eastern",
  "pipelineType": "INTERSTATE LIQUID ONSHORE",
  "caseStatus": "CLOSED",
  "citedSections": [
    "195.440(a)",
    "195.440(b)",
    "195.440(c)"
  ],
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  "caseDataAsOf": "2026-08-04",
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    },
    {
      "name": "120135009W_Warning Letter_07122013_text.pdf",
      "url": "https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/120135009W/120135009W_Warning%20Letter_07122013_text.pdf",
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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": "INTERSTATE STORAGE & PIPELINE C0"
}
```