{"operation":"document","citation":"CPF 32021078NOA","title":"CALIBER NORTH DAKOTA LLC — Notice of Amendment","source_type":"enforcement","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"historical","official":true,"published_on":"2021-12-13","effective_on":null,"summary":"CLOSED notice of amendment citing 195.234(c), 195.402(c)(3), 195.440(a), 195.440(b), 195.440(c), 195.452(f)(1).","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-32021078noa.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-32021078noa.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-32021078noa","source_url":"https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/32021078NOA","body":"Notice of Amendment involving CALIBER NORTH DAKOTA LLC. PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulations as 195.234(c),  195.402(c)(3),  195.440(a),  195.440(b),  195.440(c),  195.452(f)(1). The case was opened on 2021-12-13 and is reported as closed as of 2022-01-27. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.\n\nOfficial case documents:\n\n32021078NOA_Closure Letter_01272022_(21-199715).pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/32021078NOA/32021078NOA_Closure%20Letter_01272022_(21-199715).pdf\n\n32021078NOA_Closure Letter_01272022_(21-199715)_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/32021078NOA/32021078NOA_Closure%20Letter_01272022_(21-199715)_text.pdf\n\n32021078NOA_Notice of Amendment_12132021_(21-199715).pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/32021078NOA/32021078NOA_Notice%20of%20Amendment_12132021_(21-199715).pdf\n\n32021078NOA_Notice of Amendment_12132021_(21-199715)_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/32021078NOA/32021078NOA_Notice%20of%20Amendment_12132021_(21-199715)_text.pdf\n\n32021078NOA_Closure Letter_01272022_(21-199715)_text.pdf\n\nVIA ELECTRONIC MAIL TO: dwerth@calibermidstream.com,\nkjohnson@calibermidstream.com and aporter@calibermidstream.com\nJanuary 27, 2022\nMr. Daniel Werth\nChief Executive Officer\nCaliber North Dakota, LLC\n950 17th Street, Suite 1000,\nDenver, CO 80202\nRe: CPF 3-2021-078-NOA\nDear Mr. Werth :\nOn February 10, March 8-9, March 19, and April 12-13, 2021, a representative from the Pipeline and\nHazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), pursuant to chapter 601 of 49 United States Code,\nconducted a virtual inspection of Caliber North Dakota LLC’s (Caliber) procedures for O&M, integrity\nmanagement, public awareness, and damage prevention for its Hay Butte Unit near Alexander in\nMcKenzie County, North Dakota. As a result of the inspection, Caliber was issued a Notice of\nAmendment on December 13, 2021, which proposed amendment of your procedures.\nCaliber submitted its amended procedures on January 11 and January 26, 2022. My staff reviewed the\namended procedures, and it appears that the inadequacies outlined in this Notice of Amendment have\nbeen corrected.\nThis letter is to inform you no further action is necessary and this case is now closed. Thank you for your\ncooperation.\nSincerely,\nGregory A. Ochs\nDirector, Central Region, OPS\nPipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration\nCC: Ms. Allison Porter, Director of Operations and Engineering, 950 17th Street, Suite 1000, Denver,\nCO 80202, (aporter@calibermidstream.com)\nMs. Katie Johnson, Operations Engineer, 950 17th Street, Suite 1000, Denver, CO 80202,\n(kjohnson@calibermidstream.com)\n\n32021078NOA_Notice of Amendment_12132021_(21-199715)_text.pdf\n\nNOTICE OF AMENDMENT\nVIA ELECTRONIC MAIL TO: dwerth@calibermidstream.com,\nkjohnson@calibermidstream.com and aporter@calibermidstream.com\nDecember 13, 2021\nMr. Daniel Werth\nChief Executive Officer\nCaliber North Dakota, LLC\n950 17th Street, Suite 1000,\nDenver, CO 80202\nCPF 3-2021-078-NOA\nDear Mr. Werth:\nOn February 10, March 8-9, March 19, and April 12-13, 2021, a representative of the Pipeline\nand Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), pursuant to Chapter 601 of 49 United\nStates Code, conducted a virtual inspection of Caliber North Dakota LLC’s (Caliber) procedures\nfor O&M, integrity management, public awareness, and damage prevention for its Hay Butte\nUnit near Alexander in McKenzie County, North Dakota.\nAs a result of the inspection, PHMSA has identified the apparent inadequacies found within\nCALIBER’s plans or procedures, as described below:\n1. § 195.234 Welds: Nondestructive testing.\n(a) . . . .\n(c) Procedures for the proper interpretation of each weld inspection must be\nestablished to ensure the acceptability of the weld under § 195.228.\nCaliber’s procedures were inadequate because they failed to convey that only Level II or Level\nIII NDT personnel are allowed to interpret results as required by API Standard 1104 20th Edition\nSection 9. Also missing were procedures for nondestructive testing and standards of\nacceptability. On August 19, 2021 Caliber submitted amended procedures that satisfactorily\naddressed this issue. No further action is required.\n\n\n\n2. § 195.402 Procedural manual for operations, maintenance, and emergencies.\n(a) . . . .\n(c) Maintenance and normal operations. The manual required by paragraph (a) of\nthis section must include procedures for the following to provide safety during\nmaintenance and normal operations:\n(3) Operating, maintaining, and repairing the pipeline system in accordance with\neach of the requirements of this subpart and subpart H of this part.\nCaliber’s procedures were inadequate because they did not cover prioritizing repairs, as required\nby § 195.401(b)(3). Caliber must amend its procedures to address the prioritization of repairs.\n3. § 195.402 Procedural manual for operations, maintenance, and emergencies.\n(a) . . . .\n(c) Maintenance and normal operations. The manual required by paragraph (a) of\nthis section must include procedures for the following to provide safety during\nmaintenance and normal operations:\n(3) Operating, maintaining, and repairing the pipeline system in accordance with\neach of the requirements of this subpart and subpart H of this part.\nCaliber’s operations and maintenance (O&M) procedural manual was inadequate to assure the\nsafe operation of the pipeline. Specifically, O&M Manual Section 2.19.10.7 required operator\npersonnel to fill out Form OPS23 to document findings from tank inspections, but it did not\nrequire that the information populated on Form OPS23 was accurate. This inadequacy resulted\nin operating personnel being unaware that Tank 300 and Tank 320 level controls were\noperational on September 1, 2019. Personnel continued marking these controls as inoperable on\nthe monthly tank inspection Forms (OPS23) until August 2, 2020. Caliber must review and\nmodify its procedures to include some mechanism of quality control and approval of the\ninformation populated on OPS23 forms, through a requirement for supervisory approval\nsignature or a similar mechanism.\n4. § 195.402 Procedural manual for operations, maintenance, and emergencies.\n(a) . . . .\n(c) Maintenance and normal operations. The manual required by paragraph (a) of\nthis section must include procedures for the following to provide safety during\nmaintenance and normal operations:\n(3) Operating, maintaining, and repairing the pipeline system in accordance with\neach of the requirements of this subpart and subpart H of this part.\nCaliber’s procedures were inadequate because they did not require correction of corrosion\ncontrol deficiencies within a reasonable amount of time or, if an immediate hazard exists, to not\noperate the facility until corrected, as required by § 195.573(e). On August 19, 2021, Caliber\nsubmitted amended procedures which address and specify that corrosion control deficiencies\nmust be corrected by next inspection cycle. However, it did not address the procedures for\nmitigating an immediate hazard. On August 23, 2021, Caliber submitted further procedure\namendments that satisfactorily address mitigating an immediate hazard. No further action is\nrequired.\n2\n\n\n\n5. § 195.402 Procedural manual for operations, maintenance, and emergencies.\n(a) . . . .\n(c) Maintenance and normal operations. The manual required by paragraph (a) of\nthis section must include procedures for the following to provide safety during\nmaintenance and normal operations:\n(3) Operating, maintaining, and repairing the pipeline system in accordance with\neach of the requirements of this subpart and subpart H of this part.\nCaliber’s procedures were inadequate because O&M Manual Section 2.12.2, on internal\ncorrosion control, said only that procedures will be developed after material is tested to\ndetermine if it is corrosive. This does not include adequate guidance for investigating and\nremediating the corrosive effects of hazardous liquids, as required by § 195.579(a). Caliber must\namend its procedures to provide criteria for investigating the corrosive effect of the hazardous\nliquid or carbon dioxide on the pipeline and steps to mitigate internal corrosion.\n6. § 195.402 Procedural manual for operations, maintenance, and emergencies.\n(a) . . . .\n(c) Maintenance and normal operations. The manual required by paragraph (a) of\nthis section must include procedures for the following to provide safety during\nmaintenance and normal operations:\n(3) Operating, maintaining, and repairing the pipeline system in accordance with\neach of the requirements of this subpart and subpart H of this part.\nCaliber’s procedures were inadequate because they did not contain the four main parts of an\nExternal Corrosion Direct Assessment (ECDA) Plan and did not address the requirements of\nNACE SP0502-2010, as required by § 195.588(b)(1). Also missing was the more restrictive\ncriteria on initial application of ECDA. Caliber must amend its procedures to address the\nrequirements of § 195.588.\n7. § 195.440 Public awareness.\n(a) Each pipeline operator must develop and implement a written continuing public\neducation program that follows the guidance provided in the American Petroleum\nInstitute's (API) Recommended Practice (RP) 1162 (IBR, see § 195.3).\nCaliber’s public awareness procedures were inadequate because the statement of management\nsupport required by API RP 1162 section 2.7 Step 2 did not demonstrate commitment of\nmanagement participation and allocation of resources and funding, as required by API RP 1162\nSection 2.5. Caliber submitted on August 19, 2021 Version 1.0 of 2021 that adequately\naddressed this issue. No further action is required.\n8. § 195.440 Public awareness.\n(a) . . . .\n(b) The operator's program must follow the general program recommendations of\nAPI RP 1162 and assess the unique attributes and characteristics of the operator's\npipeline and facilities.\nCaliber’s public awareness procedures were inadequate because they did not list the specific\n3\n\n\n\npipeline system assets in the plan, as required by API RP 1162 Section 2.7 step 4. . Caliber\nsubmitted on August 19, 2021, its Public Awareness Plan Version 1.0 of 2021 that adequately\naddressed this issue. No further action is required.\n9. § 195.440 Public Awareness.\n(a) . . . .\n(c) The operator must follow the general program recommendations, including\nbaseline and supplemental requirements of API RP 1162, unless the operator\nprovides justification in its program or procedural manual as to why compliance\nwith all or certain provisions of the recommended practice is not practicable and\nnot necessary for safety.\nCaliber’s public awareness procedures were inadequate because the messages, delivery methods,\nand delivery frequencies in the Plan were from Table 2-3 – Summary Public Awareness\nCommunications for Gathering Pipeline Operators from API RP 1162, whereas, the appropriate\ntable to follow in API RP 1162 for a fully regulated hazardous liquid pipeline system like the\nHay Butte unit is Table 2-1 – Summary Public Awareness Communications for Hazardous\nLiquids and Natural Gas Transmissions Pipeline Operator. Next, missing from the procedures\nwere the relevant factor considerations for supplemental messages (API RP 1162 Section 6.2).\nFinally, missing from the plan were the specification of a maximum four-year interval for\neffectiveness evaluations (API RP 1162 Section 8.5, Table 8-1). Caliber submitted, on August\n19, 2021, Public Awareness Plan Version 1.0 of 2021 that adequately addressed the four-year\neffectiveness evaluation issue and the supplement program relevant factors issue. However,\nPublic Awareness Plan Version 1.0 2021 was missing the required message of pipeline location\ninformation and availability of NPMS in 15.1.3 for the Public Officials audience. On August 25,\n2021, Caliber submitted further amendments that addressed the missing message. No further\naction is required.\n10. § 195.452 Pipeline integrity management in high consequence areas.\\\n(a) . . . .\n(f) What are the elements of an integrity management program? An integrity\nmanagement program begins with the initial framework. An operator must\ncontinually change the program to reflect operating experience, conclusions drawn\nfrom results of the integrity assessments, and other maintenance and surveillance\ndata, and evaluation of consequences of a failure on the high consequence area. An\noperator must include, at minimum, each of the following elements in its written\nintegrity management program:\n(1) A process for identifying which pipeline segments could affect a high\nconsequence area;\nCaliber’s IMP Procedures, Section 4.8, were inadequate because they did not contain sufficient\ncriteria to ensure the air dispersion model fits the product, type of release, and contains the\nappropriate thresholds of concern for the product to ensure that all could affect and direct\nintersect high consequence areas are determined. Caliber must amend its procedures to address\nthese items.\n4\n\n\n\nResponse to this Notice\nThis Notice is provided pursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 60108(a) and 49 C.F.R. § 190.206. Enclosed as\npart of this Notice is a document entitled Response Options for Pipeline Operators in\nEnforcement Proceedings. Please refer to this document and note the response options. Be\nadvised that all material you submit in response to this enforcement action is subject to being\nmade publicly available. If you believe that any portion of your responsive material qualifies for\nconfidential treatment under 5 U.S.C. 552(b), along with the complete original document you\nmust provide a second copy of the document with the portions you believe qualify for\nconfidential treatment redacted and an explanation of why you believe the redacted information\nqualifies for confidential treatment under 5 U.S.C. 552(b).\nFollowing the receipt of this Notice, you have 30 days to submit written comments, revised\nprocedures, or a request for a hearing under §190.211. If you do not respond within 30 days of\nreceipt of this Notice, this constitutes a waiver of your right to contest the allegations in this\nNotice and authorizes the Associate Administrator for Pipeline Safety to find facts as alleged in\nthis Notice without further notice to you and to issue an Order Directing Amendment. If your\nplans or procedures are found inadequate as alleged in this Notice, you may be ordered to amend\nyour plans or procedures to correct the inadequacies (49 C.F.R. § 190.206). If you are not\ncontesting this Notice, we propose that you submit your amended procedures to my office within\n[number of days] days of receipt of this Notice. This period may be extended by written request\nfor good cause. Once the inadequacies identified herein have been addressed in your amended\nprocedures, this enforcement action will be closed.\nIt is requested (not mandated) that Caliber North Dakota LLC maintain documentation of the\nsafety improvement costs associated with fulfilling this Notice of Amendment\n(preparation/revision of plans, procedures) and submit the total to Gregory A. Ochs, Director,\nCentral Region, OPS, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. In\ncorrespondence concerning this matter, please refer to CPF 3-2021-078-NOA and, for each\ndocument you submit, please provide a copy in electronic format whenever possible.\nSincerely,\nGregory A. Ochs\nDirector, Central Region, OPS\nPipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration\nEnclosure: Response Options for Pipeline Operators in Enforcement Proceedings\ncc: Ms. Allison Porter, Director of Operations and Engineering, 950 17th Street, Suite 1000,\nDenver, CO 80202, (aporter@calibermidstream.com)\nMs. Katie Johnson, Operations Engineer, 950 17th Street, Suite 1000, Denver, CO 80202,\n(kjohnson@calibermidstream.com)\n5","truncated":false,"body_characters":15851}