{"operation":"document","citation":"CPF 520170002W","title":"HAWAII GAS — Warning Letter","source_type":"enforcement","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"historical","official":true,"published_on":"2017-02-09","effective_on":null,"summary":"CLOSED warning letter citing 192.195(b), 192.355(b).","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-520170002w.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-520170002w.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-520170002w","source_url":"https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/520170002W","body":"Warning Letter involving HAWAII GAS. PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulations as 192.195(b),  192.355(b). The case was opened on 2017-02-09 and is reported as closed as of 2017-02-09. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.\n\nOfficial case documents:\n\n520170002W_Warning Letter_02092017.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/520170002W/520170002W_Warning%20Letter_02092017.pdf\n\n520170002W_Warning Letter_02092017_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/520170002W/520170002W_Warning%20Letter_02092017_text.pdf\n\n520170002W_Warning Letter_02092017_text.pdf\n\nWARNING LETTER\nVIA FED EX – TRACKING # 7783 9512 7666\nFebruary 9, 2017\nMs. Alicia Moy\nPresident & CEO\nHawaii Gas\n745 Fort Street Mall, Ste. 1800\nHonolulu, HI 96813\nCPF 5-2017-0002W\nDear Ms. Moy:\nOn February 22-26, 2016, a representative of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety\nAdministration (PHMSA), pursuant to Chapter 601 of 49 United States Code, inspected your\nOahu Natural Gas distribution system in Oahu, Hawaii.\nAs a result of the inspection, it is alleged that you have committed probable violations of the\nPipeline Safety Regulations, Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations. The items inspected and\nthe probable violations are:\n1. §192.355 Customer meters and regulators: Protection from damage.\n(b) Service regulator vents and relief vents. Service regulator vents and relief\nvents must terminate outdoors, and the outdoor terminal must— (1) Be rain and\ninsect resistant; (2) Be located at a place where gas from the vent can escape\nfreely into the atmosphere and away from any opening into the building; and (3)\nBe protected from damage caused by submergence in areas where flooding may\noccur.\n\n\n\nService regulator vents were found to be near building openings. The vent from service\nregulator (meter #127137) was closer than 18\" to a window air-conditioner. This service\nregulator was located at 528 Manancia Place, Honolulu, Hawaii. Additionally, a service\nregulator vent at 2865A Hapue Loop, Halawa Heights, Oahu, Hawaii was also noted to be\nnear a window. These conditions and other similar ones need to be corrected.\n2. §192.195 Protection against accidental over pressuring.\n(b) Additional requirements for distribution systems. Each distribution system\nthat is supplied from a source of gas that is at a higher pressure than the\nmaximum allowable operating pressure for the system must— (1) Have pressure\nregulation devices capable of meeting the pressure, load, and other service\nconditions that will be experienced in normal operation of the system, and that\ncould be activated in the event of failure of some portion of the system; and (2) Be\ndesigned so as to prevent accidental overpressuring.\nThe monitor regulator at regulator station R-16 Middle & N King Street in Honolulu, Hawaii\nwas not functioning at the time of inspection, due to dirty plugged sensing lines. The operator\nfelt that dirt was interfering with the function of the pilot of the monitor regulator. A non-\nfunctioning monitor regulator would not prevent accidental over-pressuring the system,\nshould the worker regulator fail. This condition and other similar conditions at other regulator\nstations must be corrected.\nUnder 49 United States Code, § 60122, you are subject to a civil penalty not to exceed\n$205,638 per violation per day the violation persists up to a maximum of $2,056,380 for a\nrelated series of violations. For violation occurring between January 4, 2012 to August 1,\n2016, the maximum penalty may not exceed $200,000 per violation per day, with a maximum\npenalty not to exceed $2,000,000 for a related series of violations. For violations occurring\nprior to January 4, 2012, the maximum penalty may not exceed $100,000 per violation per\nday, with a maximum penalty not to exceed $1,000,000 for a related series of violations. We\nhave reviewed the circumstances and supporting documents involved in this case, and have\ndecided not to conduct additional enforcement action or penalty assessment proceedings at\nthis time. We advise you to correct the item(s) identified in this letter. Failure to do so will\nresult in Hawaii Gas being subject to additional enforcement action.\nNo reply to this letter is required. If you choose to reply, in your correspondence please refer\nto CPF 5-2017-0002W. Be advised that all material you submit in response to this\nenforcement action is subject to being made publicly available. If you believe that any\nportion of your responsive material qualifies for confidential treatment under 5 U.S.C. 552(b),\nalong with the complete original document you must provide a second copy of the document\n\n\n\nwith the portions you believe qualify for confidential treatment redacted and an explanation of\nwhy you believe the redacted information qualifies for confidential treatment under 5 U.S.C.\n552(b).\nSincerely,\nChris Hoidal,\nDirector, Western Region\nPipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration\ncc: PHP-60 Compliance Registry\nPHP-500 D. Hassell (#151680)","truncated":false,"body_characters":5064}