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Underground Storage Tanks Cleanup Frequent Questions
- What Is An Underground Storage Tank (UST) System?
- Who Can Answer Questions About UST Systems?
- How Can You Tell If A Release Has Occurred?
- How Do You Report A Release From An UST System?
- What Are The Responsibilities Of An UST Owner Or Operator?
- What Are Your Reporting Responsibilities?
- Are Heating Oil Tanks Regulated?
- Why Are UST Systems Regulated?
- Who Regulates UST Systems?
Additional questions and answers may be found by visiting EPA's Underground Storage Tanks web site.
1. What Is An Underground Storage Tank (UST) System?
An underground storage tank (UST) system is a tank (or a combination of tanks) and connected piping having at least 10 percent of their combined volume underground. The tank system includes the tank, underground connected piping, underground ancillary equipment, and any containment system. The federal UST regulations apply only to underground tanks and piping storing either petroleum or certain hazardous substances.
The following types of tanks do not have to meet federal UST regulations:
- Farm and residential tanks of 1,100 gallons or less capacity holding motor fuel used for noncommercial purposes;
- Tanks storing heating oil used on the premises where it is stored;
- Tanks on or above the floor of underground areas, such as basements or tunnels;
- Septic tanks and systems for collecting storm water and wastewater;
- Flow-through process tanks;
- Tanks of 110 gallons or less capacity; and
- Emergency spill and overfill tanks.
Some state/local regulatory authorities, however, may include these tank types in their UST regulations—be sure you check with these authorities if you have questions about the requirements for your tank type.
Also, some tank types only need to meet the federal UST requirements for cleaning up a release (these tank types have been deferred from needing to meet most other federal UST requirements). Some examples of these tank types are field-constructed tanks, UST systems containing radioactive material, USTs that are part of an emergency generator system at nuclear power generation facilities, and airport hydrant fuel distribution systems.
Other storage sites, such as surface impoundments, are not covered by the federal requirements.
For more detailed information on the applicability of federal UST requirements for different types of USTs, please refer to Subpart A of Part 280 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR).
2. Who Can Answer Questions About UST Systems?
The underground storage tank (UST) program is primarily implemented by states and territories. Your first point of contact is the state or territorial regulatory agency that has jurisdiction where the USTs are physically located. A list of State and Territorial UST Program Offices is provided for your convenience.
If you have an UST question that involves USTs in Indian Country, contact your EPA Regional Office. EPA has responsibility for, and authority over, USTs in Indian Country.
For general questions about the federal UST program, you can contact your Regional EPA UST Program Office.
3. How Can You Tell If A Release Has Occurred?
Various warning signals can indicate that your underground storage tank (UST) may be leaking and creating problems for the environment and your business. You can minimize these problems by paying careful attention to early warning signals and reacting to them quickly before major problems develop.
You should suspect a leak when you discover any of the following warning signals:
- You, your coworkers, or customers smell escaped product or see anything like an oily sheen on water near the facility.
- Your neighbors complain of vapors in their basements or about water that tastes or smells like petroleum.
- Someone reports unusual operating conditions at your facility, such as erratic behavior of the dispensing pump.
- You receive or generate results from leak detection monitoring and testing that indicate a leak.
If you suspect that a release may have occurred, you must immediately notify your state or local implementing agency. If your tank is in Indian Country, then you must contact the EPA Regional UST program office. Quick action on your part can minimize the extent of environmental damage and the threat to human health and safety, and it can minimize your share of the high costs that can result from cleaning up extensive releases and responding to third-party liability claims. See the answer to "How Do You Report A Release From An UST System?" for more details on reporting releases.
4. How Do You Report A Release From An UST System?
If a release from an underground storage tank (UST) system is suspected, the owner or operator must report the release to the state or local implementing agency within 24 hours, or another reasonable time period specified by the implementing agency. If the leak takes place in Indian Country, then the EPA's Regional UST program should be contacted.
Steps should also be taken immediately to stop the release and ensure that there is no threat to the safety of persons in the vicinity of the release.
It is not necessary to notify the implementing agency of aboveground
spills or overfills of petroleum of less than 25 gallons (or another
reasonable amount specified by the implementing agency) if the release
can be contained and cleaned up within 24 hours. It is also not necessary
to notify the implementing agency of a spill or overfill of a hazardous
substance which results in a release to the environment that is less
than its reportable quantity under the Comprehensive Environmental Response,
Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA or "Superfund")
if it can be contained and cleaned up within 24 hours (for more information
and see 40
CFR 302.5 of CERCLA)
.
5. What Are The Responsibilies Of An UST Owner Or Operator?
All federally regulated USTs must:
- Be registered with the appropriate regulatory authority, and
- Meet leak detection requirements
In addition owners and operators must:
- Meet financial responsibility requirements,
- Perform a site check and corrective action in response to leaks, spills and overfills,
- Follow regulatory rules during installation of new tanks and closure of existing tanks,
- Maintain records as required, and
- Have periodic checks performed on corrosion protection and leak detection systems.
UST owners and operators need to contact their state or local agency that implements the UST program to receive specific information on requirements for their tanks. If the tanks are located in Indian Country, then you should contact the EPA Regional Office.
For more information refer to the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR).
6. What Are Your Reporting Responsibilities?
You need to report to the regulatory authority on the following occasions:
- When you install an UST, you have to fill out a notification form and submit it to your state or local regulatory agency. This form provides information about your UST, including a certification of correct installation. (You should have already used this form to identify your existing USTs. If you haven't done that yet, be sure you do so now.)
- You must report suspected releases to the regulatory authority. If a release is confirmed, you must also report follow-up actions you plan or have taken to correct the damage caused by your UST.
- You must notify the regulatory authority 30 days before you permanently close your UST.
You should check with your regulatory authority about the particular reporting requirements in your area, including any additional or more stringent requirements than those noted above. A list of state UST contacts is provided for your convenience.
More information about reporting and recordkeeping.
7. Are Heating Oil Tanks Regulated?
Tanks used for the storage of heating oil for consumptive use on the premises where stored are excluded from federal UST regulations. However, state or territorial regulatory agencies may regulate these tanks. You can view a map showing states with approved UST programs to regulate these tanks but note that this data may not be up-to-date. You should contact your local regulatory agency for more information.
"Heating oil" includes several grades of petroleum fuel oils: No. 1, No. 2, No. 4-light, No. 4-heavy, No. 5-light, No.5-heavy, No.6, Navy Special Fuel Oil, and Bunker C, plus No.2 diesel fuel and kerosene when used for heating purposes only.
A flow chart entitled "Does my tank qualify for the heating oil tank exemption?" (PDF) (1 p., 220.1 KB) is available to aid you in determining whether your UST qualifies for the heating oil tank exclusion.
"Consumptive use" is not intended to be limited to heating purposes only: the definition extends to any on-site use including heating, generating emergency power, and generating steam, process heat, or electricity. The exclusion does not apply to tanks storing heating oil for resale.
The "premises" is not limited to the building where the heating oil is stored; it includes anywhere on the same property. Thus, centralized heating units using heating oil that serve more than one building on the same property would qualify for exclusion.
8. Why Are UST Systems Regulated?
As of September 30, 2001, 418,918 releases have been reported from UST systems. For state-by-state data (reported semi-annually) on the cumulative number of active USTs, confirmed releases, cleanups initiated, cleanups completed, and emergency reponses, go to the Corrective Action Measures Archive.
These releases have been caused by leaks, spills, and overfills from UST systems. These releases can threaten human safety and health as well as the environment because UST systems contain hazardous and toxic chemicals.
Fumes and vapors can travel beneath the ground and collect in areas such as basements, utility vaults, and parking garages where they can pose a serious threat of explosion, fire, and asphyxiation or other adverse health effects.
Gasoline, leaking from service stations, is one of the most common sources of groundwater pollution. Because approximately one-half of the population of the United States relies on groundwater as their source of drinking water, groundwater pollution is a serious problem. Many municipal and private wells have had to be shut down as the result of contamination caused by releases from UST systems.
Preventing and cleaning up releases are the two primary goals of the programs that regulate USTs. Cleaning up petroleum releases is difficult and usually expensive; it is easier and less costly to prevent releases before they happen. The old adage of "an ounce of prevention being worth a pound of cure" is particularly relevant to UST systems.
9. Who Regulates UST Systems?
In 1984, Congress directed the U.S. EPA to develop regulations for underground storage tank (USTs) systems. The Office of Underground Storage Tanks (OUST) was created to carry out this mandate. The federal regulations went into effect in December 1988. These regulations delegate UST regulatory authority to approved state programs. States with approved programs operate in lieu of the federal regulations. Currently 29 states (plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico) have approved UST programs.
You should contact your State or Territorial regulatory agency to learn which regulations apply to your UST system. However, if your tanks are located in Indian Country, you should contact the EPA Regional UST Program office that is the implementing agency for your area.