Oil Pollution Act (OPA) & SPCC Plans PDF

Chapter 7: Oil Pollution Act/ SPCC Plans Oil Pollution Act (OPA) (an amendment to the CWA) ◼ Direct response to Exxon Valdez oil spill (1989) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1VdQEMEju8 ◼ Title 1: Federal liability scheme for vessels and facilities that release oil in waters subject to...

Chapter 7: Oil Pollution Act/ SPCC Plans Oil Pollution Act (OPA) (an amendment to the CWA) ◼ Direct response to Exxon Valdez oil spill (1989) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1VdQEMEju8 ◼ Title 1: Federal liability scheme for vessels and facilities that release oil in waters subject to US jurisdiction ◼ Page 421: “Strict liability is a legal doctrine that imposes on a person who engages in a particular activity the responsibility for compensating others for the harm caused, regardless of fault.” ◼ The OPA makes the responsible party strictly liable for oil spill damages Oil Pollution Act (OPA) ◼ A trust fund financed by a tax on oil created to clean up spills when the responsible party is incapable or unwilling to do so ◼ Requires oil storage facilities and vessels to submit to the Federal government plans detailing how they will respond to large discharges ◼ Requires the development of Area Contingency Plans to prepare and plan for oil spill response on a regional scale ◼ Coast Guard has published regulations for oil tankers ◼ EPA has regulations for aboveground storage facilities  Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure Requirements ◼ Section 311 of the CWA states that “there should be no discharges of oil or hazardous substances into or upon the navigable waters of the United States, adjoining shorelines, or into or upon the waters of the contiguous zone” SPCC Regulations ◼ In 1990, the Oil Pollution Act amended the Clean Water Act to require some oil storage facilities to prepare Facility Response Plans. ◼ On July 1, 1994, EPA finalized the revisions that directed facility owners or operators to prepare and submit plans for responding to a worst-case discharge of oil ◼ Following the Floreffe, Pennsylvania oil spill in 1988 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elURS0BJvxA) and then the Exxon Valdez spill , EPA proposed revisions to the Oil Pollution Prevention Regulation in the 1990s and finalized the amendments in 2002, with compliance dates in 2011 but eventually extended for farms until 2013. SPCC plan ◼ The SPCC plan addresses the storage of oil products in containers 55 gallons or greater which have the potential to reach the waterways of the United States ◼ Facilities that have less than 42,000 gallons or less of oil underground or 1,320 gallons above ground are exempt ◼ An SPCC plan is a written document that outlines how a facility will prevent, contain, and clean up oil spills. The purpose of the SPCC plan is to help facilities prevent oil spills into navigable waters or adjoining shorelines. SPCC plan ◼ The plan should include: ◼ the assessment of potential spill quantities and pathways to reach surface waters ◼ measures for spill control by containment structures or other means ◼ procedures and personnel committed to responding to a spill ◼ notification requirements ◼ procedures for disposal of spilled materials ◼ contingency planning ◼ Plan must be certified by a registered professional engineer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUFjOOKalVc SPCC Plan ◼ The plan must be reviewed within 90 days before the five-year anniversary of the plan's preparation date ◼ Amendments must be certified by a registered professional engineer ◼ Facilities must also conduct training at least once a year to ensure that staff members know how to handle oil or petroleum properly and how to respond to a discharge ◼ Example SPCC plan https://ipo.rutgers.edu/rehs/spcc-adelphia Homework ◼ None