NGA PSMS Resource Center 

Website Terms of Use 

Last Modified: September 16, 2021 

Welcome to the Terms of Use for the Northeast Gas Association (“NGA,” “we’ or “us”) Pipeline Safety Management Systems (PSMS) Resource Center. This PSMS Resource Center has been developed to enable the sharing of information about PSMS and operational lessons learned to foster an environment of continuous improvement.. This document governs your use of the PSMS Resource Center. 

Acceptance of the Terms of Use 

These terms of use are entered into by and between You and NGA. The following terms and conditions, together with any documents they expressly incorporate by reference (collectively, "Terms of Use"), govern your access to and use of ngapsms.com, including any content, functionality, and services offered on or through ngapsms.com (the "Website"), whether as a guest or a registered user. 

Please read the Terms of Use carefully before you start to use the Website. By using the Website or by clicking to accept or agree to the Terms of Use when this option is made available to you, you accept and agree to be bound and abide by these Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy incorporated herein by reference. If you do not want to agree to these Terms of Use or the Privacy Policy, you are not granted permission and must not access or use the Website. 

Changes to the Terms of Use 

We may revise and update these Terms of Use from time to time at our sole discretion. All changes are effective immediately when we post them. 

Your continued use of the Website following the posting of revised Terms of Use means that you accept and agree to the changes. You are expected to check this page from time to time so you are aware of any changes, as they are binding on you. 

Accessing the Website and Account Security 

We reserve the right to withdraw or amend this Website, and any service or material we provide on the Website, at our sole discretion without notice. We will not be liable if for any reason all or any part of the Website is unavailable at any time or for any period. From time to time, we may restrict access to some parts of the Website, or the entire Website, to users, including registered users. 

You are responsible for both: 

• Making all arrangements necessary for you to have access to the Website. 

• Ensuring that all persons who access the Website through your internet connection are aware of these Terms of Use and comply with them. 

To access the Website or some of the resources it offers, you may be asked to provide certain registration details or other information. It is a condition of your use of the Website that all the information you provide on the Website is correct, current, and complete. You agree that all information you provide to register with this Website or otherwise, including, but not limited to, through the use of any interactive features on the Website, is governed by our Privacy Policy and you consent to all actions we take with respect to your information consistent with our Privacy Policy. 

If you choose, or are provided with, a user name, password, or any other piece of information as part of our security procedures, you must treat such information as confidential, and you must not disclose it to any other person or entity. You also acknowledge that your account is personal to you and agree not to provide any other person with access to this Website or portions of it using your user name, password, or other security information. You agree to notify us immediately of any unauthorized access to or use of your user name or password or any other breach of security. YOU ALSO AGREE TO ENSURE THAT YOU EXIT FROM YOUR ACCOUNT AT THE END OF EACH SESSION. YOU SHOULD USE PARTICULAR CAUTION WHEN ACCESSING YOUR ACCOUNT FROM A PUBLIC OR SHARED COMPUTER SO THAT OTHERS ARE NOT ABLE TO VIEW OR RECORD YOUR PASSWORD OR OTHER PERSONAL INFORMATION. 

We have the right to disable any user name, password, or other identifier, whether chosen by you or provided by us, at any time at our sole discretion for any or no reason, including if, in our opinion, you have violated any provision of these Terms of Use. 

Intellectual Property Rights 

The Website and its entire contents, features, and functionality (including but not limited to all information, software, text, displays, images, video, and audio, and the design, selection, and arrangement thereof) are owned by the NGA, its licensors, or other providers of such material and are protected by United States and international copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, and other intellectual property or proprietary rights laws. 

These Terms of Use permit you to use the Website for your personal, non-commercial use, or in your professional capacity, as permitted by NGA’s contractual relationship with your employer (the “Agreement”). You must not reproduce, distribute, modify, create derivative works of, publicly display, publicly perform, republish, download, store, or transmit any of the material on our Website, except as follows: 

• Your computer may temporarily store copies of such materials in RAM incidental to your accessing and viewing those materials. 

• You may store files that are automatically cached by your Web browser for display enhancement purposes. 

• You may print or download a reasonable number of pages of the Website (the “Pages”) for (i) yourself in your personal or professional capacity, so long as you only share such Pages with the parties described in (ii) and (iii) below, (ii) your employer, provided such use is consistent with the Agreement , and (iii) your employer’s contractors or subcontractors, provided their use of such Pages is limited to the work they perform for your employer and such use is permitted by the Agreement. 

• You may integrate portions of the Website into your employer’s internal training materials and other internal documents or programs, provided that (a) such materials, documents, or programs identify NGA and The Blacksmith Group as the holders of the copyright (i.e. © 2021_Northeast Gas Association, Inc. & The Blacksmith Group), (b) your employer do not sell the derivative works for profit, and (c) your employer does not use the derivative works other than for internal training or operational purposes, consistent with the Agreement. 

• If we provide desktop, mobile, or other applications for download, you may download a single copy to your computer or mobile device solely for your own personal, non-commercial use, provided you agree to be bound by our end user license agreement for such applications. 

Except as permitted by these Terms of Use, you must not: 

• Modify copies of any materials from this site. 

• Delete or alter any copyright, trademark, or other proprietary rights notices from copies of materials from this site. 

You must not access or use for any commercial purposes any part of the Website or any services or materials available through the Website except as otherwise permitted by these Terms of Use. 

If you print, copy, modify, download, or otherwise use or provide any other person with access to any part of the Website in breach of the Terms of Use, your right to use the Website will stop immediately and you must, at our option, return or destroy any copies of the materials you have made. No right, title, or interest in or to the Website or any content on the Website is transferred to you, and all rights not expressly granted are reserved by the NGA. Any use of the Website not expressly permitted by these Terms of Use is a breach of these Terms of Use and may violate copyright, trademark, and other laws. 

Trademarks 

The NGA name, logo, and all related names, logos, product and service names, designs, and slogans are trademarks of the NGA or its affiliates or licensors. You must not use such marks without the prior written permission of the NGA, and you must not remove our trademarks from any material you print or download from the Website. All other names, logos, product and service names, designs, and slogans on this Website are the trademarks of their respective owners. 

Prohibited Uses 

You may use the Website only for lawful purposes and in accordance with these Terms of Use. You agree not to use the Website: 

• In any way that violates any applicable federal, state, local, or international law or regulation (including, without limitation, any laws regarding the export of data or software to and from the US or other countries). 

• To send, knowingly receive, upload, download, use, or re-use any material that does not comply with the Content Standards set out in these Terms of Use. 

• To impersonate or attempt to impersonate the NGA, a NGA employee, another user, or any other person or entity (including, without limitation, by using email addresses or screen names associated with any of the foregoing). 

• To engage in any other conduct that restricts or inhibits anyone's use of the Website, or which, as determined by us, may harm the NGA or users of the Website, or expose them to liability. 

Additionally, you agree not to: 

• Use the Website in any manner that could disable, overburden, damage, or impair the site or interfere with any other party's use of the Website, including their ability to engage in real time activities through the Website. 

• Use any robot, spider, or other automatic device, process, or means to access the Website for any purpose, including monitoring or copying any of the material on the Website. 

• Use any manual process to monitor or copy any of the material on the Website, or for any other purpose not expressly authorized in these Terms of Use, without our prior written consent. 

• Use any device, software, or routine that interferes with the proper working of the Website. 

• Introduce any viruses, Trojan horses, worms, logic bombs, or other material that is malicious or technologically harmful. 

• Attempt to gain unauthorized access to, interfere with, damage, or disrupt any parts of the Website, the server on which the Website is stored, or any server, computer, or database connected to the Website. 

• Attack the Website via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of-service attack. 

• Otherwise attempt to interfere with the proper working of the Website. 

User Contributions 

The Website contains a section (the Lessons Learned Bulletin Board a.k.a. “Board”) that permits our members to share operationally focused lessons learned among members and under defined conditions, with members of the public, subject to the these Terms of Use. The Board is administered by a technical review committee (the “Committee”), which is composed of member subject matter experts (SME’s). Committee participation is rotated on a routine basis (the typical term is 6 months) to ensure broad membership participation. Your posts to the Board are integral to the success of the Website and the continuous improvement of our users, and we encourage you to submit your lessons learned to benefit the NGA community. All posts to the Board are made by authorized participating member points-of-contact (POC’s) then reviewed and approved by the Committee. Because the approval Committee is comprised of member employees, facilitated by NGA staff, NGA has limited authority over the contents of the Board and is not liable for its contents. The Website may also contain other boards, chat rooms, forums, and other interactive features (collectively with the Board, "Interactive Services") that allow users to post, submit, publish, display, or transmit to other users or other persons (hereinafter, "post") content or materials (collectively, "User Contributions") on or through the Website. 

All User Contributions must comply with the content standards (collectively, “Content Standards”) set out below. User Contributions must not: 

• Be submitted by anyone other than an authorized member point-of-contact (POC) using the approved submittal form. 

• Present false information about events or incidents. 

• Remove, conceal, modify or change any material information relevant to the incident or lesson learned. 

• Disclose any privileged attorney work product or attorney-client communications or other confidential information and documents. 

• Attribute fault or conclude negligence or wrongdoing in the posting/submission; instead, state the facts of the incident and the appropriate response. 

• Contain any material that is defamatory, offensive, harassing, violent, hateful, inflammatory, or otherwise objectionable. 

• Infringe any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright, or other intellectual property or other rights of any other person. 

• Violate the legal rights (including the rights of publicity and privacy) of others or contain any material that could give rise to any civil or criminal liability under applicable laws or regulations or that otherwise may be in conflict with these Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy. 

• Be likely to deceive any person. 

• Promote any illegal activity, or advocate, promote, or assist any unlawful act. 

• Cause annoyance, inconvenience, or needless anxiety or be likely to upset, embarrass, alarm, or annoy any other person. 

• Impersonate any person, or misrepresent your identity or affiliation with any person or organization. 

• Involve commercial activities or sales, such as contests, sweepstakes, and other sales promotions, barter, or advertising. 

• Give the impression that they emanate from or are endorsed by us or any other person or entity, if this is not the case. 

Any User Contribution you submit for consideration to the site will be considered non-confidential and non-proprietary. By providing any User Contribution on the Website, you grant us the right to use, reproduce, modify, perform, display, distribute, and otherwise disclose to third parties any such material according to your submission settings. 

Only participating member entities and their employees authorized to post, submit, view, access or use the Website may download, copy, use or disclose materials, content or information from the Website for use with their own employees and contractors. 

All statements must be factual and correct, including those regarding specific entities, individuals, products or manufacturers. 

You represent and warrant that: 

• You own or control all rights in and to the User Contributions and have the right to grant the license granted above to us and our licensees, successors, and assigns. 

• All of your User Contributions do and will comply with these Terms of Use. 

You understand and acknowledge that you are responsible for any User Contributions you submit or contribute, and you, not the NGA, have full responsibility for such content, including its legality, reliability, accuracy, and appropriateness. 

We are not responsible or liable to any third party for the content or accuracy of any User Contributions posted by you or any other user of the Website. 

Monitoring and Enforcement; Termination 

We have the right to: 

• Remove or refuse to post any User Contributions for any or no reason in our sole discretion. 

• Take any action with respect to any User Contribution that we deem necessary or appropriate in our sole discretion, including if we believe that such User Contribution violates the Terms of Use, including the Content Standards, infringes any intellectual property right or other right of any person or entity, threatens the personal safety of users of the Website or the public, or could create liability for the NGA. 

• Take appropriate legal action, including without limitation, referral to law enforcement, for any illegal or unauthorized use of the Website. 

• Terminate or suspend your access to all or part of the Website for any or no reason, including without limitation, any violation of these Terms of Use. 

Without limiting the foregoing, we have the right to cooperate fully with any law enforcement authorities or court order requesting or directing us to disclose the identity or other information of anyone posting any materials on or through the Website. YOU WAIVE AND HOLD HARMLESS THE NGA FROM ANY CLAIMS RESULTING FROM ANY ACTION TAKEN BY THE NGA DURING, OR TAKEN AS A CONSEQUENCE OF, INVESTIGATIONS BY EITHER THE NGA OR LAW ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITIES. 

As noted above, NGA relies on the Committee to review and approve all posts to the Board. Similarly, we will attempt but cannot ensure prompt removal of objectionable material after it has been posted. Accordingly, we assume no liability for any action or inaction regarding transmissions, communications, or content provided by any user or third party. We have no liability or responsibility to anyone for performance or nonperformance of the activities described in this section. 

Copyright Infringement 

If you believe that any User Contributions violate your copyright, please send us a notice of copyright infringement mgallinaro@northeastgas.org. It is the policy of the NGA to terminate the user accounts of repeat infringers. 

Reliance on Information Posted 

The information presented on or through the Website is made available solely for general information purposes. We do not warrant the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of this information. Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk. We disclaim all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on such materials by you or any other visitor to the Website, or by anyone who may be informed of any of its contents. 

This Website [may include/includes] content provided by third parties, including materials provided by other users, bloggers, and third-party licensors, syndicators, aggregators, and/or reporting services. All statements and/or opinions expressed in these materials, and all articles and responses to questions and other content, other than the content provided by the NGA, are solely the opinions and the responsibility of the person or entity providing those materials. These materials do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the NGA. We are not responsible, or liable to you or any third party, for the content or accuracy of any materials provided by any third parties. 

Changes to the Website 

We may update the content on this Website from time to time, but its content may not necessarily be complete or up-to-date. Any of the material on the Website may be out of date at any given time, and we are under no obligation to update such material. 

Information About You and Your Visits to the Website 

All information we collect on this Website is subject to our Privacy Policy. By using the Website, you consent to all actions taken by us with respect to your information in compliance with the Privacy Policy. 

Links from the Website 

The Website contains links to other sites and resources provided by third parties. These links are provided for your convenience only. This includes links contained in advertisements, including banner advertisements and sponsored links. We have no control over the contents of those sites or resources, and accept no responsibility for them or for any loss or damage that may arise from your use of them. If you decide to access any of the third-party websites linked to this Website, you do so entirely at your own risk and subject to the terms and conditions of use for such websites. No links to the Website are permitted from third party emails, websites, or other resources without NGA’s prior approval, which shall be at NGA’s sole discretion. 

Disclaimer of Warranties 

You understand that we cannot and do not guarantee or warrant that files available for downloading from the internet or the Website will be free of viruses or other destructive code. You are responsible for implementing sufficient procedures and checkpoints to satisfy your particular requirements for anti-virus protection and accuracy of data input and output, and for maintaining a means external to our site for any reconstruction of any lost data. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PROVIDED BY LAW, WE WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE CAUSED BY A DISTRIBUTED DENIAL-OF-SERVICE ATTACK, VIRUSES, OR OTHER TECHNOLOGICALLY HARMFUL MATERIAL THAT MAY INFECT YOUR COMPUTER EQUIPMENT, COMPUTER PROGRAMS, DATA, OR OTHER PROPRIETARY MATERIAL DUE TO YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITE OR ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE WEBSITE OR TO YOUR DOWNLOADING OF ANY MATERIAL POSTED ON IT, OR ON ANY WEBSITE LINKED TO IT. 

YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITE, ITS CONTENT, AND ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE WEBSITE IS AT YOUR OWN RISK. THE WEBSITE, ITS CONTENT, AND ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE WEBSITE ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS, WITHOUT ANY WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. NEITHER THE NGA NOR ANY PERSON ASSOCIATED WITH THE NGA MAKES ANY WARRANTY OR REPRESENTATION WITH RESPECT TO THE COMPLETENESS, SECURITY, RELIABILITY, QUALITY, ACCURACY, OR AVAILABILITY OF THE WEBSITE. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, NEITHER THE NGA NOR ANYONE ASSOCIATED WITH THE NGA REPRESENTS OR WARRANTS THAT THE WEBSITE, ITS CONTENT, OR ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE WEBSITE WILL BE ACCURATE, RELIABLE, ERROR-FREE, OR UNINTERRUPTED, THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED, THAT OUR SITE OR THE SERVER THAT MAKES IT 

AVAILABLE ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS, OR THAT THE WEBSITE OR ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE WEBSITE WILL OTHERWISE MEET YOUR NEEDS OR EXPECTATIONS. 

YOU ASSUME SOLE RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITE AND YOUR RELIANCE ON THE INFORMATION AND DOCUMENTS CONTAINED THEREIN. 

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PROVIDED BY LAW, THE NGA HEREBY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, STATUTORY, OR OTHERWISE, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, NON-INFRINGEMENT, AND FITNESS FOR PARTICULAR PURPOSE. 

THE FOREGOING DOES NOT AFFECT ANY WARRANTIES THAT CANNOT BE EXCLUDED OR LIMITED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW. 

Limitation on Liability 

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PROVIDED BY LAW, IN NO EVENT WILL THE NGA, ITS AFFILIATES, OR THEIR LICENSORS, SERVICE PROVIDERS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, OFFICERS, OR DIRECTORS BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES OF ANY KIND, UNDER ANY LEGAL THEORY, ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH YOUR USE, OR INABILITY TO USE, THE WEBSITE, ANY WEBSITES LINKED TO IT, ANY CONTENT ON THE WEBSITE OR SUCH OTHER WEBSITES, INCLUDING ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PERSONAL INJURY, PAIN AND SUFFERING, EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, LOSS OF REVENUE, LOSS OF PROFITS, LOSS OF BUSINESS OR ANTICIPATED SAVINGS, LOSS OF USE, LOSS OF GOODWILL, LOSS OF DATA, AND WHETHER CAUSED BY TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), BREACH OF CONTRACT, OR OTHERWISE, EVEN IF FORESEEABLE. 

THE FOREGOING DOES NOT AFFECT ANY LIABILITY THAT CANNOT BE EXCLUDED OR LIMITED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW. 

Indemnification 

By accessing, viewing or using content provided at the Website, you agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless the NGA, its affiliates, licensors, and service providers, and its and their respective officers, directors, employees, contractors, agents, licensors, suppliers, successors, and assigns from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, judgments, awards, losses, costs, expenses, or fees (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or relating to your violation of these Terms of Use or your use of the Website, including, but not limited to, your User Contributions, any use of the Website's content, services, and products other than as expressly authorized in these Terms of Use, or your use of any information obtained from the Website. 

Governing Law and Jurisdiction 

All matters relating to the Website and these Terms of Use, and any dispute or claim arising therefrom or related thereto (in each case, including non-contractual disputes or claims), shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the internal laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts without giving effect to any choice or conflict of law provision or rule (whether of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts or any other jurisdiction). 

Any legal suit, action, or proceeding arising out of, or related to, these Terms of Use or the Website shall be instituted exclusively in the federal courts of the United States or the courts of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, although we retain the right to bring any suit, action, or proceeding against you for breach of these Terms of Use in your country of residence or any other relevant country. You waive any and all objections to the exercise of jurisdiction over you by such courts and to venue in such courts. 

Waiver and Severability 

No waiver by the NGA of any term or condition set out in these Terms of Use shall be deemed a further or continuing waiver of such term or condition or a waiver of any other term or condition, and any failure of the NGA to assert a right or provision under these Terms of Use shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. 

If any provision of these Terms of Use is held by a court or other tribunal of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable for any reason, such provision shall be eliminated or limited to the minimum extent such that the remaining provisions of the Terms of Use will continue in full force and effect. 

Entire Agreement 

The Terms of Use, and our Privacy Policy constitute the sole and entire agreement between you and the NGA regarding the Website and supersede all prior and contemporaneous understandings, agreements, representations, and warranties, both written and oral, regarding the Website. 

Your Comments and Concerns 

This website is operated by the Northeast Gas Association, located at 75 Second Avenue, Suite 510, Needham Heights, MA 02494-2859. 

All feedback, comments, requests for technical support, and other communications relating to the Website should be directed to: mgallinaro@northeastgas.org