{"operation":"document","citation":"CPF 320065053","title":"TE PRODUCTS PIPELINE COMPANY, LLC — Notice of Probable Violation","source_type":"enforcement","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"historical","official":true,"published_on":"2006-12-19","effective_on":null,"summary":"CLOSED notice of probable violation citing 195.412(a).","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-320065053.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-320065053.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-320065053","source_url":"https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/320065053","body":"Notice of Probable Violation involving TE PRODUCTS PIPELINE COMPANY, LLC. PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulation as 195.412(a). The case was opened on 2006-12-19 and is reported as closed as of 2008-12-22. Proposed civil penalty: $29,000. Assessed civil penalty: $29,000. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.\n\nOfficial case documents:\n\n320065053_FinalOrder_12052008.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/320065053/320065053_FinalOrder_12052008.pdf\n\n320065053_finalorder_12052008_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/320065053/320065053_finalorder_12052008_text.pdf\n\n320065053_finalorder_12052008_text.pdf\n\nO\nU S Department\nof Transportation\nPipeline and Hazardous\nMaterials Safety\nAdministration\n1200 New Jersey Ave S E\nWashington DC 20590\nDEC J 2008\nMr. Terry L. Hurlburt\nSenior Vice President of Operations\nTexas Eastern Products Pipeline Company, LLC\n1100 Louisiana Street\nHouston, TX 77002\nRe: CPF No. 3-2006-5053\nDear Mr. Hurlbint:\nEnclosed is the Final Order issued in the above-referenced case. It makes findings of violation\nand assesses a civil penalty of $29, 000. The penalty payment terms are set forth in the Final\nOrder. This enforcement action closes automatically upon payment. Your receipt of the Final\nOrder constitutes service of that document under 49 C. F. R. ( 190. 5.\nThank you for your cooperation in this matter.\nSincerely,\nJeffrey D. Wiese\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety\nEnclosure\ncc: Ivan A. Huntoon, Director, Central Region\nCERTIFIED MAIL — RETURN RECEIPT RE UESTED\n\n\n\nU. S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION\nPIPELINE AND HAZARDOUS MATERIALS SAFETY ADMINISTRATION\nOFFICE OF PIPELINE SAFETY\nWASHINGTON, D. C. 20590\n)\nIn the Matter of\n)\n)\nTexas Eastern Products Pipeline )\nCompany, LLC, )\nf/k/a Texas Eastern Products )\nPipeline Company, L. P.\n, )\n)\nRespondent.\n)\nCPF No. 3-2006-5053\nFINAL ORDER\nBetween May 8-12, June 27-30, August 7-11, August 28-31 and September 18-21, 2006,\npursuant to 49 U. S. C. $ 60117, representatives of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety\nAdministration, Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS), conducted an on-site pipeline safety inspection\nof the operating facilities of Texas Eastern Products Pipeline Company, L. P.\n,\nin Ohio, Illinois,\nIndiana, and Kentucky, and reviewed the company's records in Watkins Glen, New York, and\nSeymour, Indiana. Respondent, now known as Texas Eastern Products Pipeline Company, LLC\n(TEPPCO or Respondent), operates approximately 4, 600 miles of hazardous liquid pipelines. '\nAs a result of the inspection, the Director, Central Region, OPS (Director), issued to Respondent,\nby letter dated December 19, 2006, a Notice of Probable Violation and Proposed Civil Penalty\n(Notice). In accordance with 49 C. F. R. $ 190. 207, the Notice proposed finding that Respondent\nhad violated 49 C. F. R. $ 195. 412 and assessing a civil penalty of $29, 000 for the alleged\nviolations.\nTEPPCO responded to the Notice by letter dated January 25, 2007 (Response). While\nRespondent did not admit any violation, it offered certain information in response to the\nallegations and requested that the proposed civil penalty be reduced or eliminated. Respondent\ndid not request a hearing and therefore has waived its right to one.\nFINDINGS OF VIOLATION\nThe Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C. F. R. Part 195, as follows:\n' At the time the Notice of Probable Violation and Proposed Civil Penalty was issued, Texas Eastern Products\nPipehne Company, L P, owned and operated the referenced facihties Respondent informed OPS in August 2007\nthat the name of the operator had changed to Texas Eastern Products Pipeline Company, LLC\n\n\n\nItem la: The Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C. F. R. $ 195. 412(a), which states:\ng 195. 412 Inspection of rights-of-way and crossings under navigable\nwaters.\n(a) Each operator shall, at intervals not exceeding 3 weeks, but at least\n26 times each calendar year, inspect the surface conditions on or adjacent to\neach pipeline right-of-way. Methods of inspection include walking, driving,\nflying or other appropriate means of traversing the right-of-way. . . .\nThe Notice alleged that the Respondent failed to conduct adequate inspections of its pipeline\nright-of-way at Milepost (MP) 174. 70 (Line A-1 Hopedale to Millersport) in Ohio. Specifically,\nit alleged that TEPPCO utilized aerial patrols to inspect this portion of its right-of-way but was\nunable to inspect the surface conditions from the air because the company failed to keep the area\nclear of trees and underbrush. The fact that the right-of-way was obscured from aerial view has\nbeen documented by photographs taken during the inspection.\nIn its Response, TEPPCO neither admitted nor denied the allegation. Instead, it stated that the\ncompany's mowing contractor cleared the vegetation in this area on December 22, 2006.\nHowever, Respondent's corrective action occurred approximately seven months after the OPS\ninspection and therefore cannot serve to cure the violation.\nItem 1b: The Notice alleged that Respondent also violated 49 C. F. R. ) 195. 412(a), as stated\nabove, by failing to conduct adequate inspections of its right-of-way near MP 122. 03 (Line P-\n35), at the Wabash River valve site in Illinois. Specifically, it alleged that TEPPCO utilized\naerial patrols to inspect this portion of its right-of-way but was unable to inspect the surface\nconditions from the air because the company failed to keep the area clear of trees and\nunderbrush. The fact that the right-of-way was obscured from aerial view has been documented\nby photographs taken during the inspection.\nIn its Response, TEPPCO neither admitted nor denied the allegation. Instead, Respondent stated\nthat the right-of-way was cleared on October 23, 2006. However, Respondent's corrective action\noccurred a full month after the inspection. As stated in Item la, correcting a deficiency after an\ninspection occurs cannot serve to cure the violation.\nAccordingly, I find that Respondent violated 49 C. F. R. $ 195. 412(a) by failing to adequately\ninspect the surface conditions on or adjacent to its pipeline right-of-way at MP 174. 70 and MP\n122. 03,\nThese findings of violation will be considered prior offenses in any subsequent enforcement\naction taken against Respondent.\nASSESSMENT OF PENALTY\nUnder 49 U. S. C. ) 60122, Respondent is subject to an administrative civil penalty not to exceed\n\n\n\n3\n$100, 000 per violation for each day of the violation, up to a maximum of $1, 000, 000 for any\nrelated series of violations.\n49 U. S. C. ) 60122 and 49 C. F. R. ( 190. 225 require that, in determining the amount of the civil\npenalty, I consider the following criteria: the nature, circumstances, and gravity of the violation,\nincluding adverse impact on the environment; the degree of Respondent's culpability; the history\nof Respondent's prior offenses; the Respondent's ability to pay the penalty and any effect that\nthe penalty may have on its ability to continue doing business; and the good faith of Respondent\nin attempting to comply with the pipeline safety regulations. In addition, I may consider the\neconomic benefit gained from the violation without any reduction because of subsequent\ndamages, and such other matters as justice may require.\nThe Notice proposed a civil penalty of $29, 000 for Respondent's violation of 49 C. F. R. )\n195. 412(a). The purpose of ) 195. 412(a) is to ensure that operators regularly inspect the surface\nconditions of their pipeline rights-of-way in order to detect encroachments and other threats to\nthe integrity of their facilities, especially in high-population and environmentally sensitive areas.\nWithout adequate patrols, third-party damage to a pipeline is also more likely to go undetected.\nIn its Response, TEPPCO requested that OPS review the penalty assessment and either waive or\nreduce the amount on account of the company's post-inspection actions to clear the right-of-way.\nRespondent also pointed out that \"only two overgrown sites were detected for probable\nviolation\" over 2, 500 miles of highly volatile liquid (HVL) pipeline.\nI find these arguments unpersuasive for several reasons. First, while it may be true that these two\nobstructed areas are relatively small in relation to the entire length of TEPPCO's system, it is\nalso true that OPS only inspected approximately 701 miles of TEPPCO's entire 4, 600-mile\npipeline system as part of this inspection. It is unknown how many other violations of $\n195. 412(a) may have occurred along the rest of Respondent's system.\nSecond, while TEPPCO may have acted promptly to correct the violations after the inspection\noccurred, there is no indication that TEPPCO made a concerted effort to consistently keep these\nportions of its right-of-way properly cleared and inspected on a regular basis, as required by $\n195. 412(a). The rights-of-way should have been kept cleared for aerial inspection without the\nnecessity of an inspector's visit.\nThird, Respondent's pipeline at MP 122. 03 is a dual-service line that transports both propane and\npetroleum products. The right-of-way in this area lies close to a residential trailer park and the\nWabash River. A potential pipeline malfunction here could have serious impacts on public\nsafety, the water supply, and wildlife and fish in the area. Clear visibility of the right-of-way\nwould also enable TEPPCO to respond more quickly and efficiently in the event of an actual\nrelease. Finally, I would note that Respondent has had at least one prior violation of 49 C. F. R. $\n195. 412(a).\nBased upon the foregoing, I find that Respondent has not demonstrated any circumstances\n' See CPF ¹ 2-2005-5013\n\n\n\n4\njustifying a reduction or waiver of the civil penalty. Accordingly, having reviewed the record\nand considered the assessment criteria, I assess Respondent a total civil penalty of $29, 000.\nPayment of the civil penalty must be made within 20 days of service. Federal regulations\n(49 C. F. R. $ 89. 21(b)(3)) require this payment be made by wire transfer, through the Federal\nReserve Communications System (Fedwire), to the account of the U. S. Treasury. Detailed\ninstructions are contained in the enclosure. Questions concerning wire transfers should be\ndirected to: Financial Operations Division (AMZ-341), Federal Aviation Administration, Mike\nMonroney Aeronautical Center, P. O. Box 25082, Oklahoma City, OK 73125; (405) 954-8893.\nFailure to pay the $29, 000 civil penalty will result in accrual of interest at the current annual rate\nin accordance with 31 U. S. C. ( 3717, 31 C. F. R. $ 901. 9 and 49 C. F R. $ 89. 23. Pursuant to\nthose same authorities, a late penalty charge of six percent (6%) per annum will be charged if\npayment is not made within 110 days of service. Furthermore, failure to pay the civil penalty\nmay result in referral of the matter to the Attorney General for appropriate action in a United\nStates District Court.\nUnder 49 C. F. R. ( 190. 215, Respondent has a right to submit a Petition for Reconsideration of\nthis Final Order. The petition must be received within 20 days of Respondent's receipt of this\nFinal Order and must contain a brief statement of the issue(s). The filing of the petition\nautomatically stays the payment of any civil penalty assessed. However if Respondent submits\npayment for the civil penalty, the Final Order becomes the final administrative decision and the\nright to petition for reconsideration is waived, The terms and conditions of this Final Order shall\nbe effective upon receipt.\nDEC 5 2008\nJeffrey D. Wiese\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety\nDate Issued","truncated":false,"body_characters":11649}