| (a) Applicability. This section applies to any person
who operates a waterfront or offshore facility. If an operator controls
part of a facility which is waterfront or offshore, the entire facility
in which oil is handled or stored under the control of that operator
must be covered by the discharge prevention and response certificate.
Pipelines, flowlines, gathering lines, or transmission lines that
transfer oil across an area of coastal waters are considered facilities.
A combination of interrelated or adjacent tanks, impoundments, pipelines,
gathering lines, flow lines, separator or treatment facilities, and
other structures, equipment, or devices under common ownership or
operation will be considered a single facility under OSPRA. Interrelated
means the devices are all an integral part of one commercial or industrial
operation or are managed and controlled by a single entity. The term
includes facilities owned by units of federal, state, or local government,
as well as privately owned facilities.
(b) Current certificate and implementation of certified
plan required to operate. No entity may operate a waterfront or offshore
facility without implementing a current discharge prevention and response
plan that has been certified by the GLO. This requirement does not
apply, however, to an entity that operates a facility and has obtained
a waiver from the facility certification requirement pursuant to §19.4
of this title (relating to Waiver) or if an exemption applies to the
facility.
(c) Certificate void when operator changes or facility
classification level increases. A discharge prevention and response
certificate is issued to a specific operator and for a particular
facility classification level. When the operator of a facility changes,
the discharge prevention and response certificate is void. The new
operator of the facility will need to submit an application for a
certificate to the GLO before beginning to operate the facility. A
certificate is also void when the facility changes its operations
in a manner that increases its facility classification level. If an
operator increases storage capacity or installs new oil transfer lines
at a facility, causing the facility classification to change from
small to intermediate or large or from intermediate to large, the
operator will need to apply for a new certificate in accordance with
31 TAC §19.12(d).
(d) Obtaining a discharge prevention and response certificate.
(1) The operator of a facility must apply for a discharge
prevention and response certificate by submitting a completed application
form to the GLO. Application forms are available from the General
Land Office, Oil Spill Prevention and Response Program, 1700 North
Congress Avenue, Austin, Texas 78701-1495 or from any regional office
of the GLO. The application form can also be downloaded from the GLO's
Oil Spill Prevention and Response Program website, www.glo.texas.gov/.
(2) The certificate application must be signed by a
representative of the facility operator who has approved the facility's
discharge prevention and response plan and has the authority to commit
the necessary resources to implement the plan.
(3) After consultation with the GLO, the applicant
must prepare and implement a discharge prevention and response plan
that meets the requirements of §19.13 of this title (relating
to Requirements for Discharge Prevention and Response Plans) and make
the plan available to the GLO for review.
(e) Facility audits. After the GLO determines the application
is administratively complete, the GLO may contact the facility operator
to discuss the classification of the facility and the discharge prevention
and response plan. The GLO will schedule an on-site audit and review
of the facility's discharge prevention and response plan and its implementation.
The audit will cover the following elements:
(1) the facility's compliance with applicable regulations;
(2) whether the discharge prevention and response plan
adequately addresses all the applicable elements required by §19.13;
(3) if the facility is an intermediate or large facility,
whether the discharge prevention and response plan specifically addresses
the requirements of §19.13(d) and (e); and
(4) whether the discharge prevention and response plan
has been implemented, or, if the facility is new, adequate steps have
been taken to implement the discharge prevention and response plan.
(f) Additional information. After the on-site audit,
the GLO may require an applicant to submit additional information
to resolve any issues related to the applicant's discharge prevention
and response preparedness. The GLO may also require an applicant to
develop and implement additional measures to prevent and respond to
unauthorized discharges of oil.
(g) Notification that certification requirements have
been met. When the GLO determines the facility has submitted sufficient
and accurate information in its application, has made available a
discharge and prevention response plan, and has implemented the plan,
the GLO will notify the facility operator that the certification requirements
have been met and confirm the facility classification.
(h) Change at facility. If there is a change at the
facility, the GLO must be notified in writing of the change within
15 days so that a determination of whether a new certificate is required
can be made. Facility operators must re-apply for certification if
the changes result in higher classification within 15 days of notice
from the GLO that the facility classification has changed.
(i) Term for certificates. The GLO will issue certificates
with a term of five years from the date of issuance. Each certificate
will be assigned an identification number. The facility operator will
regularly review and amend the facility information on the GLO's Oil
Spill Prevention and Response Program interactive website, as appropriate.
The identification number will be sent to the person who signed the
application form, with instructions on how to update data on the website.
(j) Review of discharge prevention and response plan
and inspection or audit of a facility. After a certificate is issued
to a facility, the GLO can require the facility operator to submit
to the GLO a complete copy of its discharge prevention and response
plan for review.
(1) A review of the plan and an inspection or audit
of the facility can be required if the GLO determines that there has
been a complaint, a spill, a change in ownership or operation at the
facility, or the facility is not compliant with these rules or may
not be adequately implementing its plan to prevent and respond to
unauthorized discharges of oil.
(2) The GLO can also review a plan and perform on-site
inspections or audits to review a facility's implementation of the
discharge prevention and response plan as part of the renewal process.
(3) Inspections or audits will be performed annually.
(k) Exemptions. The following facilities that handle
oil do not need to apply to the GLO for a discharge prevention and
response certificate:
(1) Mobile or portable oil-handling equipment, such
as a mobile offshore drilling unit, when it is fixed in place for
less than 90 days.
(2) A farm, ranch, or residential property that stores
up to and including 1,320 gallons of oil for farming, ranching, or
residential purposes.
(3) A facility that stores oil exclusively in underground
tanks and does not transfer oil to vessels in the water.
(4) A facility that stores or transfers oil only in
containers with a volume of 55 gallons or less.
(l) Effect of certificate on other violations. Issuance
of a certificate does not estop the state in an action brought under
OSPRA, or any other law, from alleging a violation of any such law,
other than failure to have a certificate.
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