{"operation":"document","citation":"CPF 420115003","title":"CHEVRON PIPE LINE CO — Notice of Probable Violation","source_type":"enforcement","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"historical","official":true,"published_on":"2011-01-28","effective_on":null,"summary":"CLOSED notice of probable violation citing 195.442(a), 195.52(a)(4).","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420115003.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420115003.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420115003","source_url":"https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/420115003","body":"Notice of Probable Violation involving CHEVRON PIPE LINE CO. PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulations as 195.442(a),  195.52(a)(4). The case was opened on 2011-01-28 and is reported as closed as of 2011-04-26. Proposed civil penalty: $203,700. Assessed civil penalty: $203,700. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.\n\nOfficial case documents:\n\n420115003_Final Order_04262011.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420115003/420115003_Final%20Order_04262011.pdf\n\n420115003_Final Order_04262011_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420115003/420115003_Final%20Order_04262011_text.pdf\n\n420115003_NOPV PCP_01282011.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420115003/420115003_NOPV%20PCP_01282011.pdf\n\n420115003_NOPV PCP_01282011_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420115003/420115003_NOPV%20PCP_01282011_text.pdf\n\n420115003_Operator Response Notice_02282011.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420115003/420115003_Operator%20Response%20Notice_02282011.pdf\n\n420115003_Final Order_04262011_text.pdf\n\nAPR 26 2011\nMs. Rebecca B. Roberts\nPresident\nChevron Pipe Line Company\n4800 Fournace Place\nBellaire, TX 77401\nRe: CPF No. 4-2011-5003\nDear Ms. Roberts:\nEnclosed please find the Final Order issued in the above-referenced case. It makes findings of\nviolation and assesses a civil penalty of $203,700. This is to acknowledge receipt of payment of\nthe full penalty amount, by wire transfer, dated February 28, 2011. Therefore, this enforcement\naction is now closed. Service of the Final Order by certified mail is deemed effective upon the\ndate of mailing, or as otherwise provided 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: Mr. R.M. Seeley, Director, Southwest Region, PHMSA\nMr. Edward LaCour, Vice President, Chevron Pipe Line Company\nCERTIFIED MAIL - RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED [7005 1160 0001 0077 5237]\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)\nChevron Pipe Line Company, ) CPF No. 4-2011-5003\n)\nRespondent. )\n____________________________________)\nFINAL ORDER\nPursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 60117, a representative of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety\nAdministration (PHMSA), Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS), conducted an investigation of an\naccident involving the pipeline system operated by Chevron Pipe Line Company (CPLC or\nRespondent) that occurred near Venice, Louisiana. CPLC operates approximately 5,200 miles of\ncrude oil terminals, refined product terminals, and natural gas pipelines in North America.1\nThe investigation arose out of a release of 400 barrels of crude oil into a canal of the Mississippi\nDelta located near Venice, Louisiana. On April 5, 2010, a third-party contractor struck CPLC’s\nCypress 10-inch line, resulting in a release of crude oil.\nAs a result of the investigation, the Director, Southwest Region, OPS (Director), issued to\nRespondent, by letter dated January 28, 2011, a Notice of Probable Violation and Proposed Civil\nPenalty (Notice). In accordance with 49 C.F.R. § 190.207, the Notice proposed finding that\nCPLC violated 49 C.F.R. §§ 195.52 and 195.442 and proposed assessing a civil penalty of\n$203,700 for the alleged violations.\nCPLC responded to the Notice by letter dated March 2, 2011 (Response). The company did not\ncontest the allegations of violation and paid the proposed civil penalty of $203,700, as provided\nin 49 C.F.R. § 190.227. Payment of the penalty serves to close the case with prejudice to\nRespondent.\nFINDINGS OF VIOLATION\nIn its Response, CPLC did not contest the allegations in the Notice that it violated 49 C.F.R. Part\n195, as follows:\n1 http://www.chevron.com/about/ourbusiness/refiningmarketingtransportation/pipelines/. Accessed on April 22,\n2011.\n\n\n\n2\nItem 1: The Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 195.52(a)(4), which states:\n§ 195.52 Telephonic notice of certain accidents.\n(a) At the earliest practicable moment following discovery of a release\nof the hazardous liquid or carbon dioxide transported resulting in an event\ndescribed in § 195.50, the operator of the system shall give notice, in\naccordance with paragraph (b) of this section, of any failure that:\n(1) . . .\n(4) Resulted in pollution of any stream, river, lake, reservoir, or other\nsimilar body of water that violated applicable water quality standards,\ncaused a discoloration of the surface of the water or adjoining shoreline, or\ndeposited a sludge or emulsion beneath the surface of the water or upon\nadjoining shorelines; . . . .\nThe Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 195.52(a)(4) by failing to give notice at\nthe earliest practicable moment to the National Response Center (NRC) following discovery of a\ncrude oil spill resulting in pollution of a waterway. Specifically, the Notice alleged that CPLC\nfailed to report the spill to the NRC until 11:30 am on April 6, 2010 (Report Number 936259),\ndespite the fact that Respondent’s SCADA system recorded a flow rate of 0 at approximately\n1:29 am on April 6, 2010. Ultimately, NRC received two third-party reports (Report Numbers\n936217 and 936219) prior to CPLC’s 11:30 am report, which was recorded approximately 11.5\nhours after the accident.\nRespondent did not contest this allegation of violation.\nAccordingly, based upon a review of all of the evidence, I find that Respondent violated 49\nC.F.R. § 195.52 by failing to give notice of the release to the NRC at the earliest practicable time\nupon its discovery of a release that resulted in pollution of a waterway.\nItem 2: The Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 195.442(a), which states:\n§ 195.442 Damage prevention program.\n(a) Except as provided in paragraph (d) of this section, each operator\nof a buried pipeline must carry out, in accordance with this section, a\nwritten program to prevent damage to that pipeline from excavation\nactivities. For the purpose of this section, the term “excavation activities”\nincludes excavation, blasting, boring, tunneling, backfilling, the removal\nof above-ground structures by either explosive or mechanical means, and\nother earthmoving operations.\nThe Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 195.442(a) by failing to carry out a\nwritten program to prevent damage to its pipeline from excavation activities. Specifically, the\nNotice alleged that CPLC failed to follow Section 5: Damage Prevention of its Core Liquid\nPipeline Operating and Maintenance Manual. CPLC personnel failed to examine, locate, and\nmark company pipelines in the vicinity of a planned excavation that was properly submitted to\nthe NTMS “One Call” system by Berry Brothers General Contracting on March 30, 2010 (Ticket\n\n\n\n3\n#100132290). PHMSA’s investigation determined that CPLC’s Empire/Venice team, under\nwhose auspices the Cypress pipeline falls, did not log onto NTMS to retrieve any “one call\ntickets” between March 30, 2010, and April 5, 2010. As a result, the pipeline was not properly\nlocated and marked according to the Respondent’s damage prevention procedures and was\nsubsequently struck by a third- party contractor on April 5, 2010.\nRespondent did not contest this allegation of violation.\nAccordingly, based upon a review of all of the evidence, I find that Respondent violated 49\nC.F.R. § 195.442(a) by failing to carry out a written program to prevent damage to its pipeline\nfrom excavation activities.\nIn summary, having reviewed the record and considered the assessment criteria, I assess\nRespondent a total civil penalty of $203,700, which has already been paid by Respondent.\nThe terms and conditions of this Final Order are effective upon service in accordance with 49\nC.F.R. § 190.5.\n___________________________________ __________________________\nJeffrey D. Wiese Date Issued\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety","truncated":false,"body_characters":8097}