SECTION 165:25-3-7.1. Release reporting

(a)   The reporting requirements of this Part do not relieve the owner/operator of the responsibility to take necessary corrective action pursuant to OAC 165:29, to protect the public health, safety and the environment, including the containment and cleanup of spills and overfills that are not required to be reported by this Chapter.

(b)   All underground storage tank system owners, operators, their employees or agents, or transporters must report to PSTD within twenty-four (24) hours of discovering any substances, conditions or monitoring results that indicate a release may have occurred using the link provided on the release reporting tab on PSTD's webpage on the Commission website; by email at [e-mail]; or by telephone at [phone] or 1-888-621-5878. If after hours, or on weekends or holidays, call the PSTD emergency phone number at [phone]. Owners or operators must provide written confirmation to follow within twenty (20) days in accordance with the requirements established in this Chapter. Events indicating a release include, but are not limited to, the following:

(1)   The discovery of released regulated substances at the facility or in the surrounding area (such as the presence of free product or vapors in soils, basements, crawlspaces, sewer and utility lines, and nearby surface water) whether on-site or off-site.

(2)   Any unusual operating conditions observed, such as the unexplained erratic behavior of product dispensing equipment, the sudden loss of product from the underground storage tank system, an unexplained presence of water in the tank, or liquid in the interstitial space of secondarily contained systems, unless the system equipment or component is found not to be releasing regulated substances to the environment; any defective system equipment or component is immediately repaired or replaced; for secondarily contained systems any liquid in the interstitial space not used as part of the interstitial monitoring method (for example brine filled) is immediately removed.

(A)   In the case of inventory control, two consecutive thirty (30) day periods where the Total Gallons Over/Short is greater than the "Leak Check" (one percent (1%) of product sales plus 130 gallons) must be reported to PSTD within twenty-four (24) hours of the owner/operator discovering the inventory control results.

(B)   Any UST system failure from a third party-certified Statistical Inventory Reconciliation (SIR) analysis must be reported to PSTD by the owner, operator, or agent within twenty-four (24) hours of discovering the failure. An immediate investigation into the cause of the failed report must be conducted and results reported to PSTD within seven (7) days.

(C)   An "Inconclusive" report from an SIR analysis must be reported by the owner, operator, or agent within twenty-four (24) hours of report generation. An Inconclusive means that the UST system has failed to meet leak detection requirements for that month thirty (30) day period.

(3)   An unusual level of vapors on the site that is of unknown origin. A vapor observation well reading in excess of 4,000 units/ppm from a pit containing gasoline tanks, and in excess of 1,500 units/ppm for a pit containing diesel or both gasoline and diesel, must be reported to PSTD within twenty-four (24) hours by the owner/operator, their employees, or agents discovering the monitoring results. Within ten (10) days, the owner/operator must submit to PSTD all vapor monitoring well data for the last twelve (12) thirty (30) day periods. Upon examination of the submitted data, PSTD will advise the owner/operator what action, if any, is needed.

(4)   An increase in vapor levels of 500 units/ppm above background or historical levels detected by thirty (30) day monitoring, even though below the twenty-four (24)-hour reporting level, must be reported if the increase does not correct itself in the second thirty (30) day period of monitoring and it must be reported to PSTD within twenty-four (24) hours of the owner, operator, their employees, or agents discovering the monitoring results.

(5)   Monitoring results, including investigation of an alarm, from a release detection method required by this Chapter that indicate a release 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;

(B)   The leak is contained in the secondary containment and;

(i)   Any liquid in the interstitial space not used as the interstitial monitoring method is immediately removed.

(ii)   Any defective system equipment or component is immediately repaired or replaced.

(C)   The alarm was investigated and determined to be a non-release event (for example, from a power surge or caused by filling the tank during release detection testing.

(c)   While aboveground releases of petroleum of less than twenty-five (25) gallons need not be reported to PSTD, they must be recorded by the owner/operator and contained and cleaned up immediately. All of the following releases must be reported to PSTD electronically or by telephone within twenty-four (24) hours of discovery, by the owner, operator, their employees, or agents, with a written confirmation to PSTD within twenty (20) days in accordance with the requirements established in this Chapter:

(1)   All known belowground releases in any quantity; for example, a release resulting from a line broken during an excavation.

(2)   Any aboveground release of petroleum greater than twenty-five (25) gallons.

(3)   Any aboveground release of petroleum which is less than twenty-five (25) gallons, but cannot be contained and cleaned up within twenty-four (24) hours.

(d)   All owners/operators of underground storage tank systems must maintain records of all reportable and nonreportable events listed in this section sufficient to permit adequate inspection and review by PSTD. These records must be kept for three (3) years following the date of the event.

(e)   If any of the possible, probable or definite release conditions set forth above are not reported within twenty-four (24) hours, the owner/operator may be subject to fines, Formal Enforcement Action or shutdown of operations.

(f)   Any releases requiring emergency corrective action must be reported immediately to PSTD at [phone] or 1-888-621-5878. After office hours, weekends or holidays, calls must be reported to PSTD's emergency number at [phone].

[Source: Renumbered from 165:25-3-7 at 32 Ok Reg 780, eff 8-27-15; Amended at 33 Ok Reg 604, eff 8-25-16; Amended at 35 Ok Reg 985, eff 10-1-18; Amended at 36 Ok Reg 551, eff 8-1-19; Amended at 37 Ok Reg 1128, eff 10-1-20]