UST Operator Certification Procedures

• Operating and Maintaining Underground Storage Tank Systems (EPA 510-B-05-002)
• Straight Talk on Tanks, 2005 (EPA 510-B-05-001)
• Musts for USTs, November 2015 (EPA 510-K-95-002)
• Dollars and Sense, Financial Responsibility Requirements for USTs(EPA 510-K-95-004)

1. STAPLE OR BIND YOUR MATERIALS.  You may not take loose pages into the exam room, so we recommend that you print the reference materials and either staple them together or place them in a three-ring binder.
2. MAKE NOTES. You may make notes in your reference materials as long as the notes are in ink and any highlighting is done before you arrive for the exam. For example, you should locate and mark in the reference materials information such as your state’s allowable release detection methods, allowable financial responsibility mechanisms, recordkeeping requirements, operator retraining requirements, etc. This will make it easier to find the information during the exam itself. PASS’ ICC preparatory courses make this easier by giving you rule citations or page numbers keyed to your reference materials.
3. USE TABS.  You may also use tabs to mark important sections, but these tabs must be permanently attached and not be removable without damage to the page (removable post-it type tabs, for example, would not be allowed).

Registration & Fees

• Each UST facility must have a valid Permit to Operate issued by the local agency.  For new facilities, or within 30 days of any change to the facility’s information, the owner/operator must submit operating permit application forms for each tank and for the facility, unless the local agency requires prior approval.  These application forms must be accompanied by a Certification of Financial Responsibility, UST Monitoring Plan, and UST Response Planalong with any required fees.
• A permit to operate will be valid for 5 years, at which time the owner/operator must submit new application forms.  Before a renewal permit is issued, however, the local agency will inspect the UST facility to ensure it is operating in compliance with UST regulations.

Release Reporting

Release Detection

• Automatic Tank Gauge (ATG);
• Secondary containment with interstitial monitoring;
• Statistical Inventory Reconciliation (SIR);
• Manual tank gauging;
• Tank tightness testing;
• Inventory control;
• Other method approved by the local agency.

Release Prevention

• In California, spill buckets must have a minimum capacity of 5 gallons.
• Overfill protection devices used in California must have no manual override and meet one of the following criteria:
  1. Device activates at 90% capacity and restricts flow or triggers an audible or visual alarm;
  2. Device activates at 95%, restricts flow, and activates audible alarm five minutes before overfill;
  3. Device activates at 95% and provides positive shut-off of flow to the tank; or
  4. Device activates before fittings are exposed to product and provides positive shut-off.

Financial Responsibility

1. Within 30 days after identifying a reportable release at the UST facility; or
2. If the owner/operator fails to obtain alternate coverage within 30 days of receiving notice of a voluntary or involuntary bankruptcy in which a financial assurance provider is named as a debtor, the suspension or revocation of a financial assurance provider’s authority, the failure of a guarantor to meet the requirements of the financial test, or any other incapacity of a financial assurance provider.

Inspection & Testing Requirements

Delivery Prohibition/Non-Compliance Enforcement

Temporary & Permanent Closure

• At least 30 days prior to closing a UST, the owner/operator must submit to the local agency for approval a proposal for compliance with closure requirements.  If there is evidence of a release, the owner/operator must initiate and complete an investigation into the suspected release and make all necessary repairs.
• An owner/operator must comply with the following requirements when closing a tank temporarily.
  • All residual liquid, solids, or sludges must be removed from the tank and properly disposed.
  • If the UST contained a hazardous substance that could produce flammable vapors, it should be inerted to minimize risk of explosion.
  • The UST may be filled with a non-hazardous, non-corrosive liquid which must be tested at the end of the temporary closure period.
  • Except for required venting, all fill and access locations must be sealed using locking caps or concrete plugs.
  • Power service to all of the pumps associated with the UST must be disconnected, unless the power services some other equipment which is not being closed.

• If a UST is temporarily closed for more than twelve months, it must be returned to use or permanently closed.
• At least 30 days prior to closing the UST, the owner/operator must notify the local agency of the intent to close the UST.  The owner/operator must also prove to the local agency that no unauthorized release has occurred at the facility by having soil and/or water samples taken at the site and analyzed.  If contaminated soils, contaminated groundwater, or free product as liquid or vapor is discovered during the site assessment, the owner/operator must immediately begin corrective action.
• When a tank has been permanently closed, it must be emptied, cleaned, and removed from the ground.
• No UST in California may be abandoned in place or closed without the correct procedures being performed.

Recordkeeping

• The results of the site assessment required at closure must be maintained for at least 3 years after completion of permanent closure or change-in-service.
• Owners/operators must keep the following records at the UST facility and make them available to the local agency or the SWRCB within 36 hours.
  • Monitoring and maintenance records must be retained for 3 years.
  • Cathodic protection maintenance records must be retained for 6½ years.
  • Written performance claims for release detection systems and maintenance records for those systems must be retained for 5 years.