| (a) General requirements.
(1) Owners and operators of new and existing underground
storage tank (UST) systems shall provide a method, or combination
of methods, of release detection which shall be:
(A) capable of detecting a release from any portion
of the UST system which contains regulated substances including the
tanks, piping, and other underground ancillary equipment;
(B) installed, calibrated, operated, maintained, utilized,
and interpreted (as applicable) in accordance with the manufacturer's
and/or methodology provider's specifications and instructions consistent
with the other requirements of this section, and by personnel possessing
the necessary experience, training, and competence to accomplish such
requirements; and
(C) capable of meeting the particular performance requirements
of such method (or methods) as specifically prescribed in this section,
based on the performance claims by the equipment manufacturer or methodology
provider/vendor, as verified by third-party evaluation conducted by
a qualified independent testing organization, using applicable United
States Environmental Protection Agency protocol, provided that the
following additional requirements shall also be met.
(i) Any performance claims, together with their bases
or methods of determination including the summary portion of the independent
third-party evaluation, shall be obtained by the owner and/or operator
from the equipment manufacturer, methodology provider, or installer
and shall be in writing.
(ii) When any of the following release detection methods
are used on or after December 22, 1990 (except for methods permanently
installed and in operation prior to that date), such method shall
be capable of detecting the particular release rate or quantity specified
for that method such that the probability of detection shall be at
least 95% and the probability of false alarm shall be no greater than
5.0%:
(I) tank tightness testing, as prescribed in subsection
(d)(1)(A) of this section;
(II) automatic tank gauging, as prescribed in subsection
(d)(4) of this section;
(III) automatic line leak detectors for piping, as
prescribed in subsection (b)(2)(A)(i) of this section;
(IV) piping tightness testing, as prescribed in subsection
(b)(2)(A)(ii)(I) of this section;
(V) electronic leak monitoring systems for piping,
as prescribed in subsection (b)(2)(A)(ii)(III) of this section; and
(VI) statistical inventory reconciliation (SIR), as
prescribed in subsection (d)(9) of this section.
(2) When a release detection method operated in accordance
with the particular performance standards for that method indicates
that a release either has or may have occurred, the owners and operators
shall comply with the applicable release reporting, investigation,
and corrective action requirements in Subchapter D of this chapter
(relating to Release Reporting and Corrective Action).
(3) Owners and operators of all UST systems shall comply
with the release detection requirements of this section in accordance
with the applicable schedules in §334.44 of this title (relating
to Implementation Schedules).
(4) As prescribed in §334.47(a)(2) of this title
(relating to Technical Standards for Existing Underground Storage
Tank Systems), any existing UST system that cannot be equipped or
monitored with a method of release detection that meets the requirements
of this section shall be permanently removed from service in accordance
with the applicable procedures in §334.55 of this title (relating
to Permanent Removal from Service) no later than 60 days after the
implementation date for release detection as prescribed by the applicable
schedules in §334.44 of this title.
(5) Any owner or operator who plans to install a release
detection method for a UST system shall comply with the applicable
construction notification requirements in §334.6 of this title
(relating to Construction Notification for Underground Storage Tanks
(USTs) and UST Systems), and upon completion of the installation of
such method shall also comply with the applicable registration and
certification requirements of §334.7 of this title (relating
to Registration for Underground Storage Tanks (USTs) and UST Systems)
and §334.8 of this title (relating to Certification for Underground
Storage Tanks (USTs) and UST Systems).
(6) Any equipment installed or used for conducting
release detection for a UST system shall be listed, approved, designed,
and operated in accordance with standards developed by a nationally
recognized association or independent testing laboratory (e.g., Underwriters
Laboratories, Inc.) for such installation or use, as specified in §334.42(d)
of this title (relating to General Standards).
(7) For a UST system to be placed temporarily out-of-service,
the owner or operator must comply with the requirements of §334.54(c)
of this title (relating to Temporary Removal from Service).
(b) Release detection requirements for all UST systems.
Owners and operators of all UST systems shall ensure that release
detection equipment or procedures are provided in accordance with
the following requirements.
(1) Release detection requirements for tanks.
(A) Tanks installed prior to January 1, 2009. Except
as provided in subparagraph (C) of this paragraph and in subsection
(d)(9) of this section, all such tanks shall be monitored in a manner
which will detect a release at a frequency of at least once every
30 days by using one or more of the release detection methods described
in subsection (d)(4) - (10) of this section.
(B) Tanks installed on or after January 1, 2009. All
such tanks shall be monitored in a manner which will detect a release
at a frequency of at least once every 30 days by using interstitial
monitoring as prescribed in subsection (d)(7) of this section as the
primary release detection method no later than September 1, 2018.
(C) The manual tank gauging method of release detection,
as described in subsection (d)(2) of this section, may be used as
the sole release detection system for tanks with a nominal capacity
of 1,000 gallons or fewer only.
(D) 30-day monthly tank gauging method of release detection,
as described in subsection (d)(3) of this section, may be used as
the sole release detection method for emergency generator tanks only.
(2) Release detection for piping. Piping in a UST system
shall be monitored in a manner which will detect a release from any
portion of the piping system, in accordance with the following requirements.
(A) Requirements for pressurized piping. UST system
piping that conveys regulated substances under pressure shall be in
compliance with the following requirements.
(i) Each separate pressurized pipe (except for piping
utilized in airport hydrant systems) shall be equipped with an automatic
line leak detector meeting the following requirements.
(I) The line leak detector shall be capable of detecting
any release from the piping system of three gallons per hour when
the piping pressure is at ten pounds per square inch.
(II) The line leak detector shall be capable of alerting
the UST system operator of any release within one hour of occurrence
either by shutting off the flow of regulated substances, or by substantially
restricting the flow of regulated substances.
(III) The line leak detector shall be tested at least
once per year for performance and operational reliability and shall
be properly calibrated and maintained, in accordance with the manufacturer's
specifications and recommended procedures.
(ii) Piping installed prior to January 1, 2009. In
addition to the required line leak detector prescribed in clause (i)
of this subparagraph, each pressurized pipe shall also be tested or
monitored for releases in accordance with at least one of the following
methods.
(I) The piping may be tested at least once per year
by means of a piping tightness test conducted in accordance with a
code or standard of practice developed by a nationally recognized
association or independent testing laboratory. Any such piping tightness
test shall be capable of detecting any release from the piping system
of 0.1 gallons per hour when the piping pressure is at 150% of normal
operating pressure.
(II) Except as provided in subsection (d)(9) of this
section, the piping may be monitored for releases at least once every
30 days by using one or more of the release detection methods prescribed
in subsection (d)(5) - (10) of this section.
(III) The piping may be monitored for releases at least
once every 30 days by means of an electronic leak monitoring system
capable of detecting any release from the piping system of 0.2 gallons
per hour at normal operating pressure.
Cont'd... |
