BALANCED ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 

BEMiSYSTEMS 100 PASSAIC AVENUE~ CHATHAM, NJ 07928 

P 908.598.2600 • F 908.598.2622 

WWW.BEMSYS.COM 

July 1, 2016 

The Honorable Douglas M. Rawald 

Office of Hearings, M-20 

US Department of Transportation 

1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE (Ell-310) 

Washington, DC 20590 

Re: Case number: 2015NM730029, Docket No. FAA-2016-4264 

Dear Judge Rawald, 

l ED 

JUL 0 6 2016 

HEARiNG DOCKET 

We received your Order to Show Cause and Provide Answer (the Order), noted as being served on June 6, 

20 16 regarding the above-referenced Case/Docket Number. This letter is in response to that mailing, 

falling within the response period of July 6, 2016. 

First, I would ask that you to please keep in mind that this is the first violation that the firm has 

encountered in our 25 years of business and we are, therefore, not familiar with the rules, regulations or 

process associated with a hearing of this nature. 

We received a package, dated March 11,2016, as referenced in the Order. The package consisted of 1) a 

cover letter from Mr. Glenn Brown, with whom we had previously corresponded and held an informal 

conference once the original Notice was served upon our company (BEM) and 2) a Complaint. There 

was nothing in the cover letter that explicitly indicated that a response of any nature was required. Upon 

re-reading the entire package, having been served with the Order, I was only then able to fmd a request on 

page 9 of the Complaint to have BEM provide a response. Given that we had previously provided written 

responses to Mr. Brown and held the informal conference, I was of the understanding the purpose of the 

March 11, 2016 package was to provide a written explanation of the Complaint and request that the 

hearing site be held in Anchorage, Alaska, in response to BEM's request for a venue that was closer to 

our offices in New Jersey given that we are a small business. Again, it was not clear or obvious that a 

written response was required as a result of the March 11,2016 correspondence as we had already done, 

so. A copy of our original response to Mr. Brown is included for your reference. 

That having been said, in response to the original request within the Complaint, BEM does not dispute 

any of the claims in the Complaint, as was previously communicated to Mr. Brown in writing as well as 

discussed during our informal conference held on February 10, 2016. BEM's purpose of the hearing 

request was limited to seeking a reduction in the penalty. As was indicated in the attached, BEM made 

numerous attempts to ensure that the package was properly labeled by our supplier. And if properly 

labeled, would have been allowed to be transported. We had originally requested that the penalty be 

waived for this initial infraction and a warning be issued with the clear understanding that subsequent 

infractions would carry monetary penalties. This was again explained during the informal conference 

held on February 10, 2016, during which Mr. Brown indicated that he was able to reduce the original 

penalty from $19,400 to $12,000. 

ALASKA 

ARIZONA 

FLORIDA 

LOUISIANA 

NEW JERSEY 

VIRGINIA 
Page2 :BALAt"lCEO ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 

BEMiSYSTEMS 

While we appreciated Mr. Brown's offer to reduce the penalty to $12,000, we still sought a hearing with 

the hope that the penalty could be further reduced, if not eliminated altogether as was originally requested 

in our November 23, 2015 letter. 

I apologize for the original delay in responding to the request within the Complaint. I believe you will 

find that we have taken this process very seriously and have been very responsive throughout its duration 

and will continue to do so moving forward. 

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call me at my office at (908) 598-2600 extension 124, 

or email me at mmurset@bemsys.com. 

Attachments (1) 

cc: Glenn H. Brown, Complainant's Counsel (letter only) 

FAA, Hearing Docket Clerk 

Sincerely, 

BEM Systems, Inc. 

~~IL~ MarkMurset 

Chief Financial Officer 
BALANCED ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 

I 00 PASSAIC AVENUE • CHATHAM, NJ 07928 

p 908 598,2600 • f 908 598.2622 

WWW.8EMSYS.COM 

November 23, 2015 

Mr. Glenn H. Brown 

Federal Aviation Administration [) 

Office of the Regional Connsel 

222 West 7'" Avenue #14 

Anchorage, AK 99513-7587 JUL 0 6 2016 

HEABING DOCf<ET 

Re: Case number: 2015NM730029 

Dear Mr. Brown, 

We received a certified letter from your office on October 26, 2015 (dated October 21 , 20 15) regarding 

the above-referenced Case. This letter is in response to that mailing, falling within the thirty (30) day 

response period. 

We are requesting an informal telephonic conference with an FAA attorney. In support of that request, 

and as instructed on the attached "Reply to Notice of Proposed Civil Penalty (Hazardous Materials)", we 

are also providing additional documents. 

First, a copy of our letter to your office frorn May 6, 2015, which outlines the events that led up to the 

event that occurred on April21, 2015. In that letter it was explained that our supplier was instructed to 

prepare the materials for air transportation, that our employee was not aware that the materials were 

incorrectly labeled and that the contents needed to be properly declared, and the steps that we are taking 

to ensure that this matter does not occur again in the future. 

In addition, I have supplied copies of our correspondence with our supplier, which is referenced in our 

May 6 letter (emails dated April 17'h and April20'h). I have highlighted the relevant passages that 

indicate that we a) ordered the items in question and b) instructed on both occasions that the materials 

needed to be properly packaged for air transportation. 

It is our understanding that our failure to comply with the stated regulations were in process only, and that 

had the items been properly marked and declared, they would have been able to be transported as was 

originally planned. This is in spite of our attempts to ensure that the materials were properly marked by 

our supplier. Given the nature of the infraction, we would respectfully request that the penalty of $19,400 

be removed and BEM Systems be formally given a warning for this initial infraction, with the 

understanding that any futnre infraction will come with a financial penalty. 

ALASKA 

ARIZONA 

FLORIDA 

LOUISIANA 

NEW JERSEY 

VIRGINIA 
8AL~NCEO ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 

BEMi)SYSTEMS 

Page2 

If you have any questious, please do not hesitate to call me at my office at (908) 598-2600 extension 124, 

or email me at mmurset@bemsys.com. 

Sincerely, 

BEM Systems, Inc. 

Mark Murset 

Chief Financial Officer 

Attachments (4) 
REPLY TO NOTICE OF PROPOSED CIVIL PENALTY (HAZARDOUS MATERIALS) 

To: Federal Aviation Administration 

Office of the Regional Counsel 

Federal Aviation Administration 

222 West 7th Ave. #14 

Anchorage, AK 99513-7587 

Subject: Notice of Proposed Civil Penalty (HM) Case No.: 2-o I :( t--J M 1-300 L ~ 

In reply to your Notice of Proposed Civil Penalty, I. elect to proceed as indicated by my check 

mark beside the numbered paragraph(s) below: 

1. [ ] I hereby submit the amount of the proposed civil penalty with the understanding that an 

order assessing a civil penalty will be issued in that amount without further notice. I 

UNDERSTAND THAT I AM WAIVING MY RIGHT TO A HEARING IF MY OFFER IS 

ACCEPTED. 

2. [ ] I have paid the proposed civil penalty with a credit card over the Internet at the following 

website: http://www.pay.gov. I understand that an order assessing a civil penalty will be issued 

in the amount without further notice. I ALSO UNDERSTAND THAT I AM WAIVING MY 

RIGHT TO A HEARING. 

3. [ ] I hereby submit evidence and information demonstrating that a violation ofthe 

regulations did not occur as alleged or that the amount of the penalty is not warranted by the 

circumstances. 

4. [ ] I hereby submit information and records showing that I am financially unable to pay the 

proposed civil penalty or that payment of the penalty would prevent me from continuing in 

business. 

5. [ ] I hereby request that the proposed civil penalty be assessed in the amount of 

$ and I submit the reasons for the reduction of the proposed amount. My request 

constitutes my agreement that ifthis offer is accepted by the FAA, an Order Assessing Civil 

Penalty in the amount I have specified may be issued without further notice. MY REQUEST 

ALSO CONSTITUTES MY AGREEMENT THAT I HAVE WAIVED MY RIGHT TO A 

HEARING. IF THE FAA DOES NOT ACCEPT THIS OFFER, HOWEVER, MY RIGHT TO A 

HEARING IS NOT AFFECTED. 

6. a D(J I hereby request a telephonic informal conference to discuss this matter with an FAA 

attorney. (An attorney will call you at the telephone number you provide here: ( )--::----,--· 

You will be provided at least 2 weeks advance notice of the date and time of this conference.) 

NOTE: If you choose to discuss this matter informally by telephone, you should provide any 

documents or other information you wish to have considered on your behalf before the date of 

the informal conference. 

-OVER- ATTACHMENT 1 
b. [ ] I hereby request an in-person informal conference with an FAA attorney to discuss this 

matter at---------------(choose an FAA office from the attached 

list). 

c. [ ] I hereby request an in-person informal conference with an FAA attorney to discuss this 

matter at . I am requesting an in-person informal 

conference at this location because 

. I have also indicated an alternate location from the attached list -~~--~-----:-

under item 6b in the event the FAA is unable to grant my request under this option. 

7. [ ] I hereby request a hearing in accordance with Subpart G of Part 13 of the Federal 

Aviation Regulations with the understanding that a Complaint will be filed. I request that the 

hearing be held in . I am sending this request both to the FAA 

attorney at the Office of the Regional Cotmsel, 222 West 7th Ave. #14, Anchorage, AK 99513-

7587, and to the Headng Docket, Federal Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Avenue, 

SW., Room 924A, Washington, DC 20591, Attention: Hearing Docket Clerk. 

Signature: 

Name: 

Address: 

Telephone: 

Email: 

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M/V\wi:Se± 6) bem-s,j?·C-0"""' 

[ ] I request that future documents in this case be sent to my representative: 

Name: 

Address: 

Telephone: 

Email: 
BALANCED ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 

BE YSTEMS 

Mr. Gary Meaders 

U.S. Department of Transportation 

Federal Aviation Administration 

222 West 7'h Avenue, Suite 14 

Anchorage, Alaska 99513 

Re: Letter of Investigation 

File Number 2015NM730029 

Incident 21 Apri12015 

Received 28 Apri12015 

Dear Mr. Meaders: 

100 PASSAIC AVENUE • CHATHAM. NJ 07928 

P 908.598.2600 • F 908.598.2622 

WWW .BEMSYS.COM 

6May2015 

09-WERC04-04, Task 3.3 

BEM Systems, Inc. (BEM) is responding to your letter dated 22 April 2015 (received 28 April2015) 

wherein it was reported that an air cargo shipment generated by our company was in violation of Title 49, 

Code of Federal Regulations, the Hazardous Materials Regulations, by containing aerosol canisters and 

one cylinder of calibration gas. We have researched the information presented in your letter and have 

found the findings to be valid. Herein is our response detailing both the events that led up to the potential 

violation and the plan that BEM has implemented to ensure that this type of event is not repeated. 

BEM was founded as an environmental consulting and remediation service finn in 1990. We have 

conducted operations in Alaska since 1999 and provide our services to a variety of Federal and 

commercial clients. As part of our routine activities, BEM utilizes and ships materials and supplies that 

would be considered regulated/hazardous materials using ground and air transportation services. Up until 

this recent incident, we have not had a recorded violation for improper packaging or shipment of 

regulated or hazardous materials. 

Typically, and as was the case for this incident, we obtain these items from various equipment providers 

or rental companies. In reviewing the details associated with this incident, BEM submitted an online 

order to obtain various field supplies from the local equipment provider, TIT Environmental (Tom 

Tompkins, 907.770.9041 ). Our logistics manager indicated in her em ails to the rental company, dated 17 

April 2015 and 20 April 2015, that the supplies would require packaging for air transpmi. She also 

communicated this information to the TTT representative on the telephone by re-confirming that the 

shipment would be transported using a commercial air transport provider. 

A field team member picked up the supplies at the equipment rental company. The staff at the equipment 

rental store informed the BEM field team member that they had not completed the final boxing up the 

order, but our staff indicated that they would finish sealing up the boxes prior to shipment. The BEM 

staff member picking up the packages was unaware that they contained regulated or hazardous materials 

as there were no exterior markings or identification labels on the boxes. It was not made clear to the 

BEM staff member that the remaining activities associated with "boxing up" of the packages, as indicated 

by the TTT employees, required placement of dangerous good labeling on the exterior of the sample 

coolers. 

Upon arrival at Alaska Air Goldstreak, our employee transferred the boxes of the field supplies to the air 

provider for shipment. Being unaware of the regulated contents placed in the shipping boxes, the 

incorrect notification box was selected on the shipping waybill, identifYing the shipment as not containing 

dangerous goods. Several hours later, BEM received a call from Alaska Airlines informing us of the 

BEMi 
Response to Letter of Investigation 

File Number 2015NM730029 

finding. Our staff traveled to the Anchorage facility, was briefed of the finding and retrieved the aerosol 

canisters and the one cylinder of the calibration gas. 

In speaking with the employees who were involved in this incident, and the staff at TTT, it appears that 

there was a communication breakdown, which should have been avoidable. We fully understand that it is 

our responsibility to insure that all shipments are properly labelled for transport. Therefore, the following 

corrective measures have been implemented to prevent this from happening again: 

• The employees involved with this incident fully understand its severity. They have been briefed 

of the incident findings and have been informed of the necessary corrective actions that will be 

implemented to prevent future errors or mislabeling of shipping packages. 

• We have implemented a cross-check system to ensure that the staff member ordering the 

equipment properly communicates its contents and shipping restrictions to any staff member that 

is delivering the shipping packages to the transport provider. We have assigned an independent 

quality control manager to provide a secondary check of all air transport shipments. 

• For all future shipments of dangerous goods or hazardous products BEM will implement a 

process whereby the responsible pm1y (BEM or our vendor) preparing the notification 

documentation is clearly identified to ensure thatthe correct identification labels are placed on the 

boxes prior to pickup and shipment by our staff. 

• Each employee delivering packages to the transport provider will be provided with the necessary 

training or rcfi·esher to properly complete all waybill documentation. 

We have implemented these corrective measures in an cffot1 to avoid any potential future re-occurrence 

of similar incidents. BEM has a 25+ year history of shipping dangerous goods and hazardous products 

with care, diligence, and without incident; and, we have conducted more than 50 shipments over the past 

five years without incident. This event is the first potential violation of its kind; and further, BEM has 

never incurred a violation of any USDOT or OSHA regulation and sees this situation as thoroughly 

anomalous and inconsistent with our corporate culture and commitment to safe and ethical business 

practices. We are hopeful that the details included in this letter are sufficient to provide an accurate 

depiction of the events leading up to this incident, and that taking into consideration the implemented 

corrective measures, along with our history of compliance, the potential violation associated with this 

matter will be reduced to a warning. 

If you have any questions, or require additional information, please contact me directly at 407.402.4440, 

or via email at cpisarri@bemsys.com. 

Sincerely, 

BEM Systems, Inc. 

attachment 

cc: Mark Nardolillo, President and CEO 

BEMO 
Mark Murset 

From: Christopher J. Pisarri 

Sent: 

To: 

Monday, November 16, 2015 6:31AM 

Mark Murset 

Subject: FW: Supply Quote for BEM - Oliktok #1 

Here is Sandy's first email regarding the shipment 

From: Sandra Peterson 

Sent: Friday, April17, 2015 1:10PM 

To: 'TTT Enviro Counter2 ' 

Cc: 'speterson423@gmail.com'; Venkat Balasubramanian 

Subject: Supply Quote for BEM - Oliktok 

Good Morning, 

BEM will be mobilizing to Oliktok LRRS within the next week or so. Will you please provide a quote for the below items. 

All rentals should be based on a monthly basis. 

1. Nitrile Gloves, XL- 2 cases 

2. PID 

3. PID Calibration kit, gas, connector 

4. 4 bound log books (Rite in the Rain, environmental reference field book) 

5. Rite in rain pens- 4 

6. Gel packs, 2 cases 

7. Safety Glasses- 6 pairs 

8. Laser level (please provide what options are available) 

9. Labels Dangerous Goods in Excepted Quantities 

10. stainless steel trowels/bowls (2 of each) 

11. Alconox 

At this point we would just like the cost of the above items. Venkat Balasubramanian may stop by your office later this 

afternoon to confirm the availability of the above list. Also, everything should be packaged for airtran~port. We will 

make sure it gets to the destination. Once we have confirmed the costs, we will place the order, for pickup on Monday 

20 April 2015. 

Please let me know if you have any questions and please reply all when the quote is available or if there are questions. 

Thank you. 

Sandra Peterson 

Project Manager 

BEM Systems, Inc. 

www,bemsys.com 

11712 Jefferson Avenue 

Suite C423 

Newport News, VA 23606 

Tel.- 757.595.9422 

Cell - 757.218.47 46 

~Before print;ng this email, please consjder the environment 

1 
Mark Murset 

From: Christopher J. Pisarri 

Sent: 

To: 

Monday, November 16, 2015 6:32AM 

Mark Murset 

Subject: FW: Quote# QE150238#2 

Here is the second email that Sandy sent regarding packaging of the equipment for air 

transport. 

-----Original Message-----

From: Sandra Peterson 

Sent: Monday, April 20, 2015 8:53 AM 

To: 'TTT Enviro Counter2 - Jonathan N.' 

Cc: Venkat Balasubramanian; 'speterson423@gmail.com' 

Subject: RE: Quote # QE150238 

Good Morning Jon, 

This quote looks good. Please also add 6 cans of spray paint in 3 different colors (2 cans 

each color). Also for the safety glasses, will you please add 6 more pairs in tinted shade 

for sun protection? 

Venkat is in training today so he will be coming to your office this afternoon around 4 PM or 

a little after to pickup this order. 

As a reminder, everything needs to be packaged for air transport. 

Thank you. 

Sandy 

-----Original Message-----

From: TTT Enviro Counter2 - Jonathan N. [mailto:anccounter2@tttenviro.com] 

Sent: Friday, April 17, 2015 2:51 PM 

To: Sandra Peterson 

Subject: Quote# QE150238 

Hello Sandra, 

Here is the quote for you. If everything looks I will get it all ready for Monday morning. 

Thanks in advance, 

Jon 

Customer Service 

TTT Environmental Instruments & Supplies 

907-770-9041 (main) 

907-770-9046 (fax) 

www.tttenviro.com 

1