{"operation":"document","citation":"CPF 220131005S","title":"COLUMBIA GAS TRANSMISSION, LLC — Safety Order","source_type":"enforcement","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"historical","official":true,"published_on":"2013-08-20","effective_on":null,"summary":"CLOSED safety order.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-220131005s.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-220131005s.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-220131005s","source_url":"https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/220131005S","body":"Safety Order involving COLUMBIA GAS TRANSMISSION, LLC. The dataset does not identify a cited regulation for this case. The case was opened on 2013-08-20 and is reported as closed as of 2014-06-25. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.\n\nOfficial case documents:\n\n220131005S_closure letter_06252014.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220131005S/220131005S_closure%20letter_06252014.pdf\n\n220131005S_closure letter_06252014_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220131005S/220131005S_closure%20letter_06252014_text.pdf\n\n220131005S_Consent Agreement_11212013.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220131005S/220131005S_Consent%20Agreement_11212013.pdf\n\n220131005S_Consent Agreement_11212013_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220131005S/220131005S_Consent%20Agreement_11212013_text.pdf\n\n220131005S_Consent Order_02052014.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220131005S/220131005S_Consent%20Order_02052014.pdf\n\n220131005S_Consent Order_02052014_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220131005S/220131005S_Consent%20Order_02052014_text.pdf\n\n220131005S_NOPSO_08202013.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220131005S/220131005S_NOPSO_08202013.pdf\n\n220131005S_NOPSO_08202013_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220131005S/220131005S_NOPSO_08202013_text.pdf\n\n220131005S_Consent Agreement_11212013_text.pdf\n\nU.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION\nPIPELINE AND HAZARDOUS MATERIALS SAFETY ADMINISTRATION\nOFFICE OF PIPELINE SAFETY\nSouthern Region\nAtlanta, GA 30303\n____________________________________\nIn the Matter of )\n)\n)\nColumbia Gas Transmission LLC )\nRespondent )\n____________________________________)\n) CPF 2-2013-1005S\nCONSENT AGREEMENT\nOn August 20, 2013, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA),\nU.S. Department of Transportation, issued to Columbia Gas Transmission LLC (CGT or\nRespondent) a Notice of Proposed Safety Order (NOPSO). The Notice alleged that conditions\nexist on CGT's pipeline facilities that pose a pipeline integrity risk to public safety, property, or\nthe environment. The Notice also proposed that Respondent take certain corrective measures to\ncorrect the alleged conditions and ensure that the public, property, and the environment are\nprotected from the potential risk.\nCGT responded to the Notice by letter dated September 17, 2013 (Response). Respondent\nacknowledged receipt of the proposed safety order and requested an informal consultation,1\nwhich was held October 8, 2013, in the Office of Pipeline Safety, Southern Region, Atlanta,\nGeorgia.\nDuring the informal consultation, PHMSA and CGT agreed that settlement of this proceeding\nwill avoid further administrative proceedings or litigation and that entry into this Consent\nAgreement is the most appropriate means of resolving the Notice; therefore, pursuant to 49\nC.F.R. Part 190, without adjudication of any issue of fact or law, and upon consent and\nagreement of Respondent and PHMSA (\"the Parties\"), the Parties agree as follows:\nI. General Provisions\n1. Respondent acknowledges that as operator of the pipeline, Respondent and its pipeline\nsystem are subject to the jurisdiction of the Federal pipeline safety laws, 49 U.S.C. § 60101\net seq., and the regulations and administrative orders issued thereunder. For purposes of this\nConsent Agreement, Respondent acknowledges that it received proper notice of PHMSA's action\n1 CGT's Response is incorporated into this Consent Agreement in whole (see attached).\n\n\n\n2\nin this proceeding and that the Notice states claims upon which relief may be granted pursuant to\n49 U.S.C. 60101 et seq. and the regulations and orders issued thereunder.\n2. Respondent does not admit or deny any allegation or conclusion in the Notice but agrees,\nfor purposes of this Consent Agreement, that the condition identified in the Notice exists and\nagrees to address it by completing the actions specified in Section II of this agreement\n(“Corrective Measures”). These actions, including any work plans and schedules, shall\nautomatically be incorporated into this agreement. This Consent Agreement does not constitute\na finding of violation of any Federal law or regulation and therefore may not be used in any civil\nproceeding of any kind as evidence or proof of any fact, fault or liability, or as evidence of the\nviolation of any law, rule, regulation or requirement, except in a proceeding to enforce the\nprovisions of this agreement or in future PHMSA enforcement actions.\n3. After Respondent returns this signed agreement, PHMSA's representative will present it to\nthe Associate Administrator for Pipeline Safety recommending that the Associate Administrator\nadopt the terms of this agreement by issuing an administrative order (Consent Order)\nincorporating the terms of this Consent Agreement. The terms of this agreement constitute an\noffer of settlement until accepted by the Associate Administrator.\n4. Respondent consents to the issuance of the Consent Order, and hereby waives any further\nprocedural requirements with respect to its issuance. Respondent waives all rights to contest the\nadequacy of notice, or the validity of the Consent Order or this Consent Agreement, including all\nrights to administrative or judicial hearings or appeals.\n5. This Consent Agreement shall apply to and be binding upon PHMSA, and upon\nRespondent, its officers, directors, and employees, and its successors, assigns, or other entities or\npersons otherwise bound by law. Respondent agrees to provide a copy of this agreement and any\nincorporated work plans and schedules to all of Respondent's officers, employees, and agents\nwhose duties might reasonably include compliance with this agreement.\n6. For all transfers of ownership or operating responsibility of Respondent’s pipeline,\nRespondent must provide a copy of this Consent Agreement to the prospective transferee at least\n30 days prior to such transfer and simultaneously provide written notice of the prospective\ntransfer to the PHMSA Regional Director who issued the Notice.\n7. This Consent Agreement constitutes the final, complete and exclusive agreement and\nunderstanding between the Parties with respect to the settlement embodied in this agreement, and\nthe Parties acknowledge that there are no representations, agreements or understandings relating\nto the settlement other than those expressly contained in this agreement, except that the terms of\nthis agreement may be construed by reference to the Notice.\n8. Nothing in this Consent Agreement affects or relieves Respondent of its responsibility to\ncomply with all applicable requirements of the Federal pipeline safety laws, 49 U.S.C. § 60101\net seq., and the regulations and orders issued thereunder. Nothing in this agreement alters\nPHMSA's right of access, entry, inspection, and information gathering or PHMSA's authority to\nbring enforcement actions against Respondent pursuant to the Federal pipeline safety laws, the\nregulations and orders issued thereunder, or any other provision of Federal or State law.\n\n\n\n3\n9. This Consent Agreement does not waive or modify any Federal, State, or local laws or\nregulations that are applicable to Respondent's pipeline systems. This agreement is not a permit,\nor a modification of any permit, under any Federal, State, or local laws or regulations.\nRespondent remains responsible for achieving and maintaining compliance with all applicable\nFederal, State, and local laws, regulations and permits.\n10. This Consent Agreement does not create rights in, or grant any cause of action to, any\nthird party not party to this agreement. The U.S. Department of Transportation is not liable for\nany injuries or damages to persons or property arising from acts or omissions of Respondent or\nits officers, employees, or agents carrying out the work required by this agreement. The U.S.\nDepartment of Transportation, its officers, employees, agents, and representatives are not liable\nfor any cause of action arising from any acts or omissions of Respondent or its contractors in\ncarrying out any work required by this agreement.\nII. Corrective Measures\n11. Upon issuance of the Consent Order, Respondent agrees to perform the Proposed\nCorrective Measures set forth in the Notice of Proposed Safety Order, which is hereby\nincorporated into this Consent Agreement. This includes, but is not limited to, the replacement of\nall temporary pipe in Line PM-3 within 180 days from the date of the Consent Order.\n12. Respondent agrees to maintain documentation of the costs associated with the\nimplementation of the Proposed Safety Order. Respondent will include in the third monthly\nreport and every third monthly report it submits thereafter pursuant to this paragraph, the to-date\ntotal costs associated with: (1) testing, evaluations and information analysis; (2) revisions of\nprocedures and additional monitoring and inspections; and (3) physical changes to pipeline\ninfrastructure, including repairs, replacements and other modifications.\n14. The Regional Director may grant an extension of time for Respondent to complete any of\nthe work to be performed if Respondent submits a timely written request demonstrating good\ncause for an extension.\nIII. Review and Approval Process\n15. With respect to any submission under Section II of this Consent Agreement that requires\nthe approval of the Regional Director, the Director may: (a) approve, in whole or in part, the\nsubmission, (b) approve the submission on specified conditions, (c) disapprove, in whole or in\npart, the submission, or (d) any combination of the foregoing. If the Regional Director approves,\napproves in part, or approves with conditions, Respondent will take all action as approved by the\nDirector, subject to Respondent's right to invoke the dispute resolution procedures in Section IV\nwith respect to any conditions the Director identifies. If the Director disapproves all or any\nportion of the submission, the Director will provide Respondent with a written notice of the\ndeficiencies. Respondent will correct all deficiencies within the time specified by the Director\nand resubmit it for approval.\n\n\n\n4\nIV. Dispute Resolution\n16. The Regional Director and Respondent will informally attempt to resolve any disputes\narising under this Consent Agreement. If Respondent and the Regional Director are unable to\ninformally resolve the dispute within 15 days, Respondent may request in writing, within 10\ndays, a written determination resolving the dispute from the Associate Administrator for Pipeline\nSafety providing all information that Respondent believes is relevant to the dispute. If the request\nis submitted as provided herein, the Associate Administrator will issue a final determination in\nwriting. The existence of a dispute and PHMSA's consideration of matters placed in dispute will\nnot excuse, toll, or suspend any term or timeframe for completion of any work to be performed\nunder this agreement during the pendency of the dispute resolution process except as agreed by\nthe Regional Director or the Associate Administrator in writing.\nV. Enforcement\n17. This Consent Agreement, as adopted by the Consent Order, is subject to all enforcement\nauthorities available to PHMSA under 49 U.S.C. § 60101 et seq. and 49 C.F.R. Part 190,\nincluding administrative civil penalties under § 60122 of up to $200,000 per violation for each\nday the violation continues, if PHMSA determines that Respondent is not proceeding according\nto the terms of the agreement, determinations made by the Regional Director, or if appealed,\ndecisions of the Associate Administrator. All work plans and associated schedules set forth or\nreferenced in Section II will be automatically incorporated into this Consent Agreement and are\nenforceable in the same manner.\nVI. Record Keeping and Information Disclosure\n18. Respondent agrees to maintain records demonstrating compliance with all requirements\nof this Consent Agreement for a period of at least five years following completion of all work to\nbe performed. For any reports, plans, or other deliverables required to be submitted to PHMSA\npursuant to this Consent Agreement, Respondent may assert a claim of business confidentiality\nor other protections applicable to the release of information by PHMSA, covering part or all of\nthe information required to be submitted to PHMSA pursuant to this agreement in accordance\nwith 49 C.F.R. Part 7. Respondent must mark the claim of confidentiality in writing on each\npage, and include a statement specifying the grounds for each claim of confidentially. PHMSA\ndetermines release of any information submitted pursuant to this Consent Agreement in\naccordance with 49 C.F.R. Part 7, the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552, DOT and/or\nPHMSA policies, and other applicable regulations and Executive Orders.\nVII. Effective Date\n19. The \"Effective Date\" as used herein is the date on which this Consent Agreement has\nbeen signed by both Respondent and PHMSA.\nVIII. Modification\n20. The terms of this Consent Agreement may be modified by mutual agreement of the\nparties. Such modifications must be in writing and signed by both parties.\n\n\n\n5\nIX. Termination\n21. This Consent Agreement terminates upon completion of all terms set forth in Section II\n(Corrective Measures) as determined by the Director, Southern Region. Respondent may request\nwritten confirmation from PHMSA when this agreement is terminated. To the extent ongoing\nmonitoring is required; PHMSA may terminate this agreement with respect to all other\nrequirements with the exception of such monitoring. Nothing in this agreement prevents\nRespondent from completing any of the obligations earlier than the deadlines provided for in this\nAgreement.\nX. Ratification\n22. The Parties undersigned representatives certify that they are fully authorized to enter into\nthe terms and conditions of this Consent Agreement and to execute and legally bind such party to\nthis document.\n23. The Parties hereby agree to all conditions and terms of this Consent Agreement:\nFor PHMSA: For Respondent:\n_______________________________ _________________________________\nWayne T. Lemoi Date Shawn L. Patterson Date\nDirector, Office of Pipeline Safety President,\nPHMSA Southern Region Operations & Project Delivery\nU.S. Department of Transportation Columbia Gas Transmission LLC\n\n220131005S_closure letter_06252014_text.pdf\n\nCERTIFIED MAIL - RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED\nJune 25, 2014\nMr. Shawn L. Patterson\nPresident, Operations & Product Delivery\nColumbia Gas Transmission LLC\n1700 MacCorkle Avenue SE\nCharleston, WV 25314\nCPF 2-2013-1005S\nDear Mr. Patterson:\nOn February 5, 2014, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA)\nissued a Consent Order (Order) to Columbia Gas Transmission LLC (CGT) incorporating the\nterms of a Consent Agreement signed by PHMSA on November 4, 2013, and CGT on\nNovember 21, 2013.\nThe Consent Agreement resulted from a Notice of Proposed Safety Order (Notice) issued to\nCGT alleging that “CGT’s 20-inch natural gas ‘Line PM-3’ pipeline or a portion thereof has\nan apparent condition that, without corrective measures, would pose a pipeline integrity risk\nto public safety, property, or the environment.” Specifically, the Notice alleged that a mining\noperation conducted on a hillside in Floyd County, Kentucky, caused an unstable landslide\ncondition that resulted in CGT temporarily replacing 1,221 feet of pipe in April 2012 and\nleaving approximately 1,357 feet of Line PM-3 exposed and lying on or suspended on the\nunstable hillside.\nThe PHMSA Southern Region has received and reviewed CGT’s letter of June 12, 2014, in\nwhich CGT summarized the actions it has taken to comply with the Order. Our review\nconfirms that CGT has met the terms of the Order. Therefore, no further action is necessary\nwith regards to this Order and this case is now closed.\nPlease be advised that this letter refers only to the Consent Order (CPF 2-2013-1005S) and\nnot to other PHMSA pending cases, if any. Also be advised that nothing herein states or\nimplies that the above described Line PM-3 meets the requirements of the federal pipeline\nsafety regulations. The pipeline system remains subject to inspection by PHMSA.\nSincerely,\nWayne T. Lemoi\nDirector, Office of Pipeline\nPHMSA Southern Region\n\n220131005S_Consent Order_02052014_text.pdf\n\nFEBRUARY 5, 2014\nMr. Shawn L. Patterson\nPresident\nColumbia Gas Transmission\n1700 MacCorkle Avenue SE\nCharleston, WV 25314\nRe: CPF No. 2-2013-1005S\nDear Mr. Patterson:\nEnclosed please find a Consent Order incorporating the terms of the Consent Agreement that you\nsigned on November 21, 2013. Service of the Consent Order and Consent Agreement by\ncertified mail is deemed effective upon the date of mailing, or as otherwise provided under\n49 C.F.R. § 190.5.\nThank you for your cooperation in this matter.\nSincerely,\nJeffrey D. Wiese\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety\nEnclosure\ncc: Mr. Wayne T. Lemoi, Director, Southern Region, PHMSA\nCERTIFIED MAIL - RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED\n\n\n\nU.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION\nPIPELINE AND HAZARDOUS MATERIALS SAFETY ADMINISTRATION\nOFFICE OF PIPELINE SAFETY\nWASHINGTON, D.C. 20590\n____________________________________\n)\nIn the Matter of )\n)\nColumbia Gas Transmission LLC ) CPF No. 2-2013-1005S\n)\nRespondent. )\n____________________________________)\nCONSENT ORDER\nBy letter dated August 20, 2013 the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration\n(PHMSA) Office of Pipeline Safety issued a Notice of Proposed Safety Order (Notice) to\nColumbia Gas Transmission LLC (Respondent) in this case.\nIn accordance with 49 C.F.R. § 190.239, the Notice alleged that Respondent’s Line PM-3\nextending from Knott County, Kentucky and terminating at the Boldman Compressor Station in\nPike County, Kentucky has an apparent condition that, without corrective measures, would pose\na pipeline integrity risk to public safety, property, or the environment and proposed that\nRespondent take certain actions to address the condition. Specifically, the Notice alleged that\napproximately 1,357 feet of Line PM-3 is exposed and lying on (or suspended from) the hillside\nfrom approximately station 1406+00 to station 1419+57.\nIn response to the Notice, Respondent requested an informal consultation and Respondent and\nPHMSA engaged in good faith settlement discussions resulting in the Consent Agreement\nattached to this Order that settles all of the allegations in the Notice.\nAccordingly, the foregoing Consent Agreement is hereby approved and incorporated by\nreference into this Order. The Respondent is hereby ordered to comply with terms of the\nConsent Agreement, effective immediately.\n\n\n\nPursuant to 49 U.S.C. 60101 et seq., failure to comply with this Consent Order [2-2013-1005S]\nmay result in the assessment of civil penalties of up to $200,000 per violation per day, or in the\nreferral of the case for judicial enforcement. The terms and conditions of this Consent Order are\neffective upon service in accordance with 49 C.F.R. § 190.5.\n___________________________________ __________________________\nJeffrey D. Wiese Date Issued\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety","truncated":false,"body_characters":19259}