N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. Tit. 6 §§ 598-3.4

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 51, December 18, 2024

Section 598-3.4 - Reporting, investigation, and confirmation

(a) Reporting responsibilities.

(1) The reporting requirements of this section apply to the following persons:

(i) the facility owner;

(ii) the tank system owner;

(iii) the operator;

(iv) the carrier;

(v) any contractor in a contractual relationship with the facility owner, tank system owner, or operator;

(vi) any other party and its contractors who have been retained as part of a business transaction relating to the facility; and

(vii) any person who causes a spill at the facility.

(2) Any person required to report under paragraph (1) of this subdivision must report the spill in accordance with subdivision (f) of this section.

(3) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (1) of this subdivision, employees of an owner or operator may report spills pursuant to a facility-specific centralized reporting protocol, provided that such reporting protocol is in writing and has been incorporated into the facility's spill prevention report prepared pursuant to section 1.9 of this Part. Independent consultants and contractors are not considered to be employees of the facility for the purposes of this section.

(b) Prohibition of spills. The spilling of a hazardous substance is prohibited unless:

(1) such spill is authorized;

(2) such spill is continuous and stable in quantity and rate and has been reported pursuant to paragraph 597.4(b)(4) of this Title; or

(3) such spill is of fire-fighting foam containing Perfluorooctanoic Acid (CAS No. 335-67-1), Ammonium Perfluorooctanoate (CAS No. 3825-26-1), Perfluorooctane Sulfonic Acid (CAS No. 1763-23-1), or Perfluorooctane Sulfonate (CAS No. 2795-39-3) used for fighting fires (but not for training purposes) and occurs on or before April 25, 2017. In the event there is a spill of such foam that exceeds the reportable quantity of any hazardous substance, the spill must be reported pursuant to subdivision (f) of this section. (c) Reporting of suspected spills.

(1) Suspected spills must be reported to the department's Spill Hotline (800-457-7362) within 2 hours after discovery and the procedures in subdivision (e) of this section must be followed for any of the following conditions:

(i) the discovery of hazardous substance outside of an AST system at the facility or in the surrounding area (e.g., the presence of free product or vapors in soils, basements, sewer and utility lines, and nearby surface water);

(ii) unusual operating conditions observed (e.g., the erratic behavior of hazardous substance dispensing equipment, the sudden loss of hazardous substance from the AST system, an unexplained presence of water in the tank, or water in the interstitial space of secondarily contained tank system components), unless the tank system component is found to be defective but not leaking, and is immediately repaired or replaced;

(iii) monitoring/testing results, including alarms, from a leak detection method required under subdivisions 3.3(a) and (b) of this Subpart which indicate that a leak may have occurred, unless:

('a') the monitoring device is found to be defective, and is immediately repaired, recalibrated, or replaced, and additional monitoring does not confirm the initial result; or

('b') the alarm was investigated and determined to be a non-spill event (e.g., from a power surge or caused by filling the tank during leak detection testing);

(iv) any other conditions or indications of a suspected spill.

(2) Where a spill of any hazardous substance has occurred or is suspected, the department may order the owner to inspect any tank system, location, and/or associated equipment which might be the source of the actual or suspected spill and to test for tightness and structural soundness. If the owner fails to conduct such tests within 10 days of the order, the department may do so. The reasonable expenses of conducting such tests incurred by the department shall be paid by the owner.

(d) Investigation due to off-site impacts. When required by the department, the procedures in subdivision (e) of this section must be followed to determine if the AST system is the source of off-site impacts. These impacts include the discovery of a hazardous substance(s) (e.g., the presence of free product or vapors in soils, basements, sewer and utility lines, and nearby surface and drinking waters) that has been observed by the department or brought to its attention by another party.

(e) Leak investigation and confirmation steps. Unless corrective action is initiated in accordance with Subpart 6 of this Part, any leak or suspected leak of a hazardous substance(s) must be immediately investigated using either one of the methods described in paragraphs (1) or (2) of this subdivision or another procedure approved by the department. The investigation must be completed, and the results submitted to the department, prior to any repairs and within 7 days after the reporting required under subdivision (c) or (f) of this section. Upon review of this information, the department may require the collection, evaluation and submission of additional information and preparation of a response and corrective action plan.

(1) System test. Testing must be conducted in accordance with 3.3(c)(1) or 3.3(d)(2) of this Subpart to determine whether a leak exists in the portion of the AST system (including delivery piping) suspected of leaking and, in the case of hazardous substance reaching secondary containment, whether a breach of the secondary containment occurred.

(i) If the test results indicate that a leak or release has occurred, the leaking AST system must be immediately emptied to prevent further leaks and be:

('a') promptly taken out of service in accordance with subdivision 3.6(a) of this Subpart and repaired in accordance with subdivision 3.2(d) of this Subpart;

('b') replaced; or

('c') permanently closed in accordance with subdivision 3.6(b) of this Subpart.

(ii) If the test results indicate that a release has occurred, corrective action must also begin in accordance with Subpart 6 of this Part.

(iii) If the test results do not indicate that a leak exists but environmental contamination is the basis for suspecting a leak, a site check must be conducted in accordance with paragraph (2) of this subdivision.

(iv) If the test results do not indicate that a leak exists and environmental contamination is not the basis for suspecting a leak, further investigation is not required.

(2) Site check. The presence or absence of a release must be measured where contamination is most likely to be present at the facility (i.e., in the excavation zone or at the AST system location). In selecting sample types, sample locations, and measurement methods, the following must also be considered: nature of the hazardous substance(s) previously stored in the AST system; type of initial alarm or cause for suspicion; type of backfill; depth of groundwater; and other factors appropriate for identifying the presence and source(s) of the release.

(i) If the site check results indicate that a release has occurred, corrective action must begin in accordance with Subpart 6 of this Part.

(ii) If the site check results do not indicate that a release has occurred, further investigation is not required.

(f) Response to spills

(1) With the exception of spills described in paragraph (3) of this subdivision, the following spills of a hazardous substance, that is covered under clause 597.1(b)(7)(i)('a') and ('b') of this Title, must be reported to the department's Spill Hotline (800-457-7362) within two hours after discovery by any person in actual or constructive control or possession of the hazardous substance when it is spilled, or any employee, agent, or representative of such person who has knowledge of the spill:

(i) the spill of a reportable quantity that occurs within any twenty-four-hour period;

(ii) the spill of a quantity that is less than a reportable quantity if any of the following conditions exist:

('a') such spill results, or may reasonably be expected to result, in a fire;

('b') such spill results, or may reasonably be expected to result, in an explosion;

('c') such spill results, or may reasonably be expected to result, in the violation of air quality standards;

('d') such spill results, or may reasonably be expected to result, in vapors, dust and/or gases that may cause illness or injury to persons, not including persons in a building where a release originates; or

('e') runoff from fire control or dilution waters may reasonably be expected to result in or contribute to a violation of water quality standards.

(2) A spill of a hazardous substance mixture is subject to the following reporting requirements:

(i) If the quantity of the hazardous constituents of the hazardous substance mixture is known, notification is required where a reportable quantity or more of any hazardous constituent is released.

(ii) If the quantity of the hazardous constituent(s) of the hazardous substance mixture is unknown, reporting is required where the total amount of the mixture released equals or exceeds the reportable quantity for the hazardous constituent with the lowest reportable quantity.

(3) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (1) of this subdivision, it is not necessary to report a spill of a reportable quantity of a hazardous substance if all of the following conditions are met:

(i) there is control over the spill and it is completely contained;

(ii) the spill has not and will not reach the land or waters of the State;

(iii) the spill is cleaned up within two hours after discovery;

(iv) the total volume of the spill is recovered or accounted for; and

(v) the spill will not result in any of the conditions listed in subparagraph (1)(ii) of this subdivision.

(g) Emergency response.

(1) In addition to the requirements of paragraph (2) of this subdivision, the owner or operator must take immediate action upon discovery of a spill to protect human health, safety, and the environment. Immediate actions which may be necessary include signaling alarms, mitigation of fire and safety hazards, contacting emergency response officials, evacuation of personnel from the site, isolation of the impact zone, preventing the migration of the spill and stopping, plugging or containing the spill. Corrective action as specified in 6.2 of this Part must also be undertaken to clean up and remove the spilled material and restore the site to protect public health, safety, and the environment.

(2) Leaking tank systems must be immediately emptied to prevent further leaks and be:

(i) promptly taken out of service in accordance with subdivision 3.6(a) of this Subpart and repaired in accordance with subdivision 3.2(d) of this Subpart;

(ii) replaced; or

(iii) permanently closed in accordance with subdivision 3.6(b) of this Subpart.

N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. Tit. 6 §§ 598-3.4

Adopted New York State Register July 19, 2023/Volume XLV, Issue 29, eff. 10/17/2023